JIM CHALMERS MP
SHADOW TREASURER
MEMBER FOR RANKIN

A FLOOD OF KINDNESS

Through the deluge and the downpour, together we’ve experienced the very worst of Mother Nature and the very best of the Australian spirit.

Almost as quickly as the floodwaters rose, our streets and our suburbs were inundated by floods of kindness, generosity and humanity.

Neighbours looking out for neighbours, strangers helping strangers, and our volunteers and first responders putting themselves in harm’s way to keep the rest of us safe.

I was at the SES headquarters at Daisy Hill when the flood boats rolled into action as our community was pummelled by unrelenting rain.

I saw first hand the dedication and commitment shown by so many local volunteers, many of them veterans of earlier flood responses.

Too many of our friends and family found their homes and possessions drenched or underwater.

In Logan alone, and in just one night on Sunday, I’m told the SES answered more than 600 calls for help.

We owe them a massive debt of gratitude and thank them from the bottom of our hearts for answering every one.

At the emergency evacuation centre at Logan Metro I met the Red Cross volunteers and the other organisations giving people something to eat and somewhere to grab a shower or charge a phone.

People coming from everywhere to do what they can so nobody is left on their own or with nowhere safe to shelter.

Now, as our community moves from crisis mode to clean-up mode, there have been more boots on the ground – our very own mud army sweeping in to clean-up the mess the water left behind.

We know from previous floods – including the big one in 2017 - that the hardest time for many is when the floodwaters have fallen and the full extent of the loss and the damage is there for all to see.

We’ve been through a lot these last couple of years, and our message to those who are struggling remains the same – you aren’t alone.

We’ll get through this together, just like we have before.

Because that’s the kind of community we are - we show up and we knuckle down when those around us need help the most.

Jim Chalmers is the federal Shadow Treasurer and Labor Member for Rankin

This opinion piece was published in the Jimboomba Times on Thursday, 3 March 2022