Upper Lachlan and Wingecarribee Councils are among 13 local government areas to receive disaster assistance following heavy weekend rain.
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The help will be made available through the Commonwealth-State Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements (DRFA).
Support includes:
- Funding for affected local councils to help with the costs of cleaning up and restoring damaged essential public assets;
- Assistance for eligible residents to help meet immediate needs like emergency accommodation or small cash payments to purchase essential items generally provided from evacuation or recovery centres;
- Grants for eligible residents to replace lost essential household items to maintain basic standard of living;
- Grants for eligible residents to undertake essential structural repairs to restore their homes to a safe and habitable condition;
- Concessional interest rate loans for small businesses, primary producers, sporting and recreation clubs, and non-profit organisations to repair or replace damaged or destroyed property;
- Freight subsidies for primary producers to help transport livestock and fodder.
Acting federal minister for emergency management, Catherine King, said floods had caused widespread damage across NSW in a very short amount of time.
"It's important that we act quickly to activate disaster support so affected communities can begin their clean-up and recovery," she said.
"I want to thank those who have worked hard to start the clean-up efforts so quickly and I want to assure those whose lives have been disrupted that we will support them through their recovery."
"The NSW government is continuing to assess the damage and fully understand the impact of this disaster, and the Australian government stands ready to respond to any requests for assistance."
The rain on Friday and Saturday, April 5 and 6 caused widespread damage and disruption. Parts of the Upper Lachlan Shire, including Curaweela, 20km north of Taralga, received 121mm.
The water level at Curraweela Creek on the Taralga to Oberon Road stood at 1.2 metres early Saturday morning. The deluge caused the road's closure. Also on the Oberon Road, flooding at the Abercrombie River bridge heavily impacted the road. Upper Lachlan Shire Council mounted cautionary signs.
The council is undertaking a full assessment of damage across the Shire.
Meantime, Crookwell district grazier and seed potato grower, Kim Weir said the rain was very welcome. His property, Pinewalla, 3km south of Crookwell, received 70mm on Friday and Saturday.
"It's absolutely ideal for the autumn break," he said.
"Leading up to lambing and having water in the soil profile for the potatoes is very timely. It's still quite mild so growth conditions are ideal."
Mr Weir has just started potato harvest, with some 400 tonnes already pulled from the ground.
He said it had been a good season to date. The only hiccup was the loss of some of his potato crop with heavy rain over Christmas, 2023.
"The rest of the season has been a godsend. That's already being reflected in the cattle and lamb markets today. Rain is always encouraging for farmers and there are smiles all around."
His property did not register any damage.
Blue Mountains, Camden, Hawkesbury, Kiama, Liverpool, Penrith, Shellharbour, Shoalhaven, Sutherland, Wollondilly and Wollongong local government areas also qualified for disaster funding.
For information relating to financial assistance, replacing lost documents, location of your nearest recovery centre and more, contact Service NSW on 13 77 88 or visit www.nsw.gov.au.
To apply for a concessional loan or primary producer grant, contact the NSW Rural Assistance Authority on 1800 678 593 or visit www.raa.nsw.gov.au.
Further information on disaster assistance can be found on the Australian Government's Disaster Assist website at www.disasterassist.gov.au.
