April 6, 2017
The South Burnett suffered close to half a million dollars damage from ex-Tropical Cyclone Debbie when it passed through the region on Thursday, March 30.
While it was initially thought the region had escaped unscathed, post-storm assessments over the past week have discovered some minor damage to public infrastructure.
South Burnett Mayor Keith Campbell said an initial estimate of the damage was “half a million dollars”, but this may rise as Council officers continue their investigations.
On Tuesday, April 4 the South Burnett was added to the list of 28 regions which qualify for help in the wake of the cyclone.
The South Burnett Regional Council can now access joint Federal-State Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements funding to fix essential public assets.
Mayor Campbell said the Council would be required to pay the first $160,000 of the bill, but the rest will be covered by the State and Federal Governments.
Individuals wanting to access personal hardship funding as a result of the cyclone should consult disasterassist.gov.au.
A one-off Disaster Recovery Payment is available to South Burnett residents who have been seriously injured, who have lost their homes or whose homes have been directly damaged, or the immediate family members of a person who has been killed, as a direct result of the tropical cyclone.
A 13-week Disaster Recovery Allowance may be available to provide income support payments to employees, primary producers and sole traders who can demonstrate they have experienced a loss of income as a direct result of the cyclone, providing they are not receiving another income support payment or pension such as the Age Pension, Newstart Allowance or Service Pension.
