Independent review launched to investigate impact of massive flood event in Cairns
The unprecedented scale of recent flooding in the suburbs and streets of Cairns will be investigated in an independent review, with council calling on residents to provide details of the impact in their local area.
It comes as Cairns Regional Council today cancelled its notice asking residents to conserve water after officers restored normal water supply to the Tunnel Hill water treatment plant.
Mayor Bob Manning said last week's flooding events had caused "millions of dollars’ worth of damage" to infrastructure and lost productivity.
The Queensland Government has declared a Disaster Event for the Cairns region and Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements (NDRRA) funding has been made available to assist with the clean-up bill.
Cr Manning said specialist independent consultants would review all material collected from residents, with a dedicated email address set up to collate information.
Residents are encouraged to send photos, videos and data to [email protected] to ensure the review is comprehensive.
"We saw incredible levels of water in streets, especially in the northern and western parts of the city," he said.
"In some cases, we have seen flooding that has not been experienced before and we need to understand why this occurred and what could be done to reduce the negative impacts of such severe rainfall events in the future.
"This is where we are calling for assistance from the community. Residents who have captured the impacts of flooding around their homes through photos and videos, or who have kept data from the event are encouraged to share their information.
"In particular, if anyone has an automated rain gauge that captured the hourly rainfall during the heaviest periods, it would help to paint a picture of exactly where the rain was falling and when."
