Federal Nationals leader David Littleproud was seven years old when the Chinchilla community in which he grew up was inundated with floodwaters from Charleys Creek and the Condomine River.
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That was 1983 and 39 years later Mr Littleproud was sitting in the back room of a Rochester coffee shop looking at the faces of business owners and community leaders concerned with the future of their town.
He recalled his parents providing flood-impacted families with pumpkin soup and the community banding behind those who had been decimated by the flood event.
There was, however, little time for reminiscing as the reality and gravity of the Rochester situation was explained in the round table discussion.
Matt Hawker, owner of Rochester’s Mitre 10 hardware store, was particularly passionate in his assessment of the town’s situation, explaining he wasn’t totally consumed by the situation his business was in, but more that of his town.
“I am really worried about the future of the town, maybe even more than I am about my business,” Mr Hawker said.
Mr Hawker, who had experienced amazing support from his community in the clean-up effort, said he was giving serious thought into “getting to higher ground”.
It is in keeping with the frustration of many Rochester businesses, who have been pretty much left to their own devices in the recovery effort.
Most have suffered significant product and infrastructure loss, a cost they are forced to absorb due to insurance restrictions.
They are unable to secure insurance for flood events and — for those that have managed to reopen — due to many members of the community being forced to relocate due to unsafe housing they remain without a regular flow of clientele.
As strange as it may seem, and as grateful as the community is for the supply of goods to Rochester, there is also the problem of food and product donations pouring into the town.
It means there is significantly reduced spending at the businesses which have re-opened their doors, just three weeks after the flood event.
Mr Hawker, along with Rochester Business Network chair Glenda Nichol, other leading business operators and then Campaspe Shire Mayor Chrissy Weller, met in an impromptu format with Mr Littleproud, Federal Member for Nicholls Sam Birrell and State Member for Murray Plains Peter Walsh at the Rochester Cafe late last week.
Mr Littleproud, the former Morrison government Emergency Services Minister, is the Member for Maranoa and has a better understanding than most of flood and fire events.
His electorate includes flood-ravaged towns of Dalby and Charleville, while he also experienced the impact of overflowing rivers while living in Toowoomba.
Mr Littleproud heard how the town has been left with no operational schools, no hospital, no childcare and no bank.
The associated cost with the loss of these facilities meant the business community had been crippled.
Parents explained that the nearest option for childcare was half an hour away at Tongala.
Infrastructure was a top priority for RBN members, the return of services that people need on a daily basis to go about their lives.
Supermarket owner Brad Major said his business was up and going, but had been thrown completely out of whack by a reduced customer base.
“We don’t expect to be trading the same way for a long time,” Mr Major said.
There is no food in the hotels or cafes, businesses don’t have the same amount of requirements for staff and many of those staff members have to face the reality of rebuilding their own lives.
There are reports that 40 per cent of houses in Rochester didn’t have flood insurance.
Mr Birrell said the Insurance Council of Australia would be one of his first “ports of call’’.
The three-pronged National party visit to Rochester also included a tour of Nanneella and an explanation of the impact of the flood on the rural community — farmers often finding themselves out of sight and mind due to the severe impact on the residential part of the district.
Mr Walsh, who described the flow of officials through the region as well-intentioned “flood tourism’’, said he appreciated the business operators making the effort to voice their concerns.
During a Mackay St footpath media address, the Nationals leader said the Nationals would keep coming back to revisit what was working and what was not, during the recovery effort.
“All levels of government need to work together to give Rochester’s businesses the opportunity to get back on their feet,” Mr Walsh said.
Mr Walsh described Rochester as a very proud community and all were in agreement that the way forward was to provide the town with the tools to help put things back on track.
“Rochester is a place of the future, not the past,” Mr Walsh said.
Ms Nichol said her concern remained for businesses that didn’t own their own building.
“There are difficult times ahead and landlords need to work with these business owners. We need kaching in the tills, more spending in the town,” Ms Nichol said.
“Our biggest issue is that the bank needs to reopen.’’
Mr Littleproud said there were some practical solutions, such as an easing of BAS requirements, that could assist businesses.
“We need to be courageous to build dams for mitigation,” Mr Littleproud said.
“We are a smart country, but we need the courage to back ourselves.
“It is about storing water. These dams won’t have water in them all the time, but they will help to keep people out of harms way.”
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