Mr KNIGHT - 2006-05-02
Could you please advise the House of the Territory’s response to Cyclone Monica and the recent flooding of the Katherine and Daly Regions?
Ms Carney: You are not even asking a budget question, you chicken.
Madam SPEAKER: Order, Leader of the Opposition!
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, the question is a totally appropriate and very important one for this House. Today. the budget has been delivered and we will be talking about that budget during Question Time. There has already been one question.
The fact that April had two major natural disaster events in the Territory makes it a very significant issue and one that I am proud to speak about on behalf of all Territorians. We had flooding early in April in Katherine and the region, and then what was described as probably the biggest cyclone to ever come to the Top End of Australia, Cyclone Monica, last week. It is a very pertinent question and I thank the member for Daly for raising the issue.
With the flooding in the Katherine region, we had communities affected in Katherine, Mataranka, Beswick, Jilkminggan, Binjari and Nauiyu. Luckily, Nhulunbuy was spared Cyclone Monica. However, the communities of Maningrida, Oenpelli and Jabiru were not. With a great sense of relief everyone in Darwin, Palmerston and the rural area breathed easy on 25 April 2006 as we realised we had also been spared. If Cyclone Monica had taken a different course in the Top End, the member for Nhulunbuy would have known the impact in Nhulunbuy and, for every member here, it would have had a significant impact on Darwin and the regional areas.
I pay tribute to the way Territorians responded, and the work which has been done across the Top End to recover from the flooding and the cyclone. Work in Maningrida, Oenpelli and Jabiru continues. It was most remarkable that, even though we had significant flooding and a significant cyclone, nobody was injured. We should be enormously grateful that no Territorian was injured in those two major events.
That is due, in no small way, to people following directions. We do know what to do when we are warned about floods and cyclones. I, as Chief Minister, other members in this House, and ministers responsible for various responses in the flooding and the cyclone were very impressed with the way Territorians responded to direction during those times. Not only did Territorians respond to directions, they did it with a strong sense of community and, when things were really tough, with a good sense of humour. The Territorian spirit and humour came through as well.
I visited Katherine twice during the floods, and saw firsthand the damage that had been inflicted by Cyclone Monica at Maningrida and Oenpelli. Our counter disaster response, in both cases, for Katherine region and for Cyclone Monica, was swift and professional. We will learn from that response; we can always do better. That assessment is being done now. I pay tribute to Territorians who were involved across the Top End.
There has been a quick recovery from the flood and the cyclone and there are a few examples of that resilience. The Katherine River broke its banks on Friday, 7 April. The pharmacy in the Target shopping centre was flooded. By Saturday morning, the floors had been cleaned, the carpet was cleaned, the lower shelves were restocked, and the pharmacy was open for business. It was a really quick response: 'Yes, we were flooded but we are back in business'.
The patients from the hospital were moved efficiently and effectively either to RAAF Tindal or to the high school. The hospital was back in operation by Sunday morning, and power restored to all homes by Sunday as well.
In terms of tourism, only one week was lost for Ghan passengers to do the trip up the gorge. By the Wednesday after the flooding, Ghan passengers were once again doing the trip up the gorge. There was enormous cooperation between all levels of government. I pay tribute to the community governments in the Katherine region and to the Commonwealth government in how we worked with them through Centrelink.
By the end of last week, 500 households in the Katherine region had received immediate relief and temporary accommodation through the Natural Disaster Relief Arrangements. The same applies to Monica. Monica damaged the communities at Maningrida, Oenpelli and Jabiru. Much of that was through falling trees. Some of those beautiful old mahogany trees, particularly in Maningrida and Oenpelli, fell and damaged homes. Fifty per cent of the homes in Maningrida were damaged in some way, but only four needed to be demolished, and approximately 40% of the houses in Oenpelli were damaged as well.
Mrs Braham: Have you finished your statement yet? You won’t have to give it later.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: Madam Speaker, power was quickly restored to all those communities.
Madam Speaker, if members opposite are not interested …
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: This has been a significant time for the Territory, and I pay tribute to those who did the hard work in the communities that were affected.
I thank all those involved in the counter disaster councils in those different parts of the Territory, our emergency services, our volunteer workers, contractors, and all levels of government. Thanks to our Top End residents who, throughout April, showed commonsense, good humour, and resilience and were able to learn from what had happened before, follow directions and keep themselves safe.
We will have a statement this afternoon, but I wanted to put on the record, during Question Time, how important it is that we learn from what has happened before, and that, with debriefings, maybe we can do things slightly differently in the future.
Ms Carney: You are not even asking a budget question, you chicken.
Madam SPEAKER: Order, Leader of the Opposition!
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, the question is a totally appropriate and very important one for this House. Today. the budget has been delivered and we will be talking about that budget during Question Time. There has already been one question.
The fact that April had two major natural disaster events in the Territory makes it a very significant issue and one that I am proud to speak about on behalf of all Territorians. We had flooding early in April in Katherine and the region, and then what was described as probably the biggest cyclone to ever come to the Top End of Australia, Cyclone Monica, last week. It is a very pertinent question and I thank the member for Daly for raising the issue.
With the flooding in the Katherine region, we had communities affected in Katherine, Mataranka, Beswick, Jilkminggan, Binjari and Nauiyu. Luckily, Nhulunbuy was spared Cyclone Monica. However, the communities of Maningrida, Oenpelli and Jabiru were not. With a great sense of relief everyone in Darwin, Palmerston and the rural area breathed easy on 25 April 2006 as we realised we had also been spared. If Cyclone Monica had taken a different course in the Top End, the member for Nhulunbuy would have known the impact in Nhulunbuy and, for every member here, it would have had a significant impact on Darwin and the regional areas.
I pay tribute to the way Territorians responded, and the work which has been done across the Top End to recover from the flooding and the cyclone. Work in Maningrida, Oenpelli and Jabiru continues. It was most remarkable that, even though we had significant flooding and a significant cyclone, nobody was injured. We should be enormously grateful that no Territorian was injured in those two major events.
That is due, in no small way, to people following directions. We do know what to do when we are warned about floods and cyclones. I, as Chief Minister, other members in this House, and ministers responsible for various responses in the flooding and the cyclone were very impressed with the way Territorians responded to direction during those times. Not only did Territorians respond to directions, they did it with a strong sense of community and, when things were really tough, with a good sense of humour. The Territorian spirit and humour came through as well.
I visited Katherine twice during the floods, and saw firsthand the damage that had been inflicted by Cyclone Monica at Maningrida and Oenpelli. Our counter disaster response, in both cases, for Katherine region and for Cyclone Monica, was swift and professional. We will learn from that response; we can always do better. That assessment is being done now. I pay tribute to Territorians who were involved across the Top End.
There has been a quick recovery from the flood and the cyclone and there are a few examples of that resilience. The Katherine River broke its banks on Friday, 7 April. The pharmacy in the Target shopping centre was flooded. By Saturday morning, the floors had been cleaned, the carpet was cleaned, the lower shelves were restocked, and the pharmacy was open for business. It was a really quick response: 'Yes, we were flooded but we are back in business'.
The patients from the hospital were moved efficiently and effectively either to RAAF Tindal or to the high school. The hospital was back in operation by Sunday morning, and power restored to all homes by Sunday as well.
In terms of tourism, only one week was lost for Ghan passengers to do the trip up the gorge. By the Wednesday after the flooding, Ghan passengers were once again doing the trip up the gorge. There was enormous cooperation between all levels of government. I pay tribute to the community governments in the Katherine region and to the Commonwealth government in how we worked with them through Centrelink.
By the end of last week, 500 households in the Katherine region had received immediate relief and temporary accommodation through the Natural Disaster Relief Arrangements. The same applies to Monica. Monica damaged the communities at Maningrida, Oenpelli and Jabiru. Much of that was through falling trees. Some of those beautiful old mahogany trees, particularly in Maningrida and Oenpelli, fell and damaged homes. Fifty per cent of the homes in Maningrida were damaged in some way, but only four needed to be demolished, and approximately 40% of the houses in Oenpelli were damaged as well.
Mrs Braham: Have you finished your statement yet? You won’t have to give it later.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: Madam Speaker, power was quickly restored to all those communities.
Madam Speaker, if members opposite are not interested …
Members interjecting.
Madam SPEAKER: Order!
Ms MARTIN: This has been a significant time for the Territory, and I pay tribute to those who did the hard work in the communities that were affected.
I thank all those involved in the counter disaster councils in those different parts of the Territory, our emergency services, our volunteer workers, contractors, and all levels of government. Thanks to our Top End residents who, throughout April, showed commonsense, good humour, and resilience and were able to learn from what had happened before, follow directions and keep themselves safe.
We will have a statement this afternoon, but I wanted to put on the record, during Question Time, how important it is that we learn from what has happened before, and that, with debriefings, maybe we can do things slightly differently in the future.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016