Flood Recovery Information - updated 06/09/2023
This page provides up to date recovery information. Council's Recovery Team are available to provide support and answer any questions. The team can be contacted by phone on 1300 797 363 or email recovery@pyrenees.vic.gov.au
FINANCIAL COUNSELLING AVAILABLE
There's free, confidential financial counselling available and is open to anyone who is experiencing financial hardship (not just for disaster affected people). CAFS in Ballarat offer the service with counsellors to help someone:
· access relief for utility bills and other payments
· understand government income and other entitlements
· negotiate with their bank on debt issues
· review and understand their insurance options
· explore their options and can advocate on their behalf.
You can make an appointment by calling 1800 692 237.
As we are starting to transition to community-led recovery, there’s some grants available to support your community. If you have any questions, please contact the Recovery Team.
Business Groups Flood Recovery Grants - DJSIR
Business Groups Flood Recovery Grants provide funding to reactivate business activity in local government areas impacted by the Victorian floods.
Grant Amount: $20,000 - $50,000
Close: 31 October 2023
The Recovery Team is looking for ideas to help your community to prepare and recover from a natural disaster. The Team wants to work with residents and/or community groups to build community connection, resilience and adapt to extreme weather events. No idea is too big or too small!!
Visit here for more information.
The Flood Recovery Newsletter is designed to keep the Pyrenees community up to date with the latest information and support to help recover from the flood events. We know the impacts can be felt for quite some time after natural disasters, and we hope this newsletter can go some way to help make the recovery process easier by providing access to quality information.
You can read the newsletter by clicking on the link below. It is also available in hard copy at the Shire Offices and Resource Centre in Beaufort and also the Avoca Information & Community Centre.
We believe strongly that communication should be two-way, and Council is encouraging residents to provide input and feedback by contacting the Recovery Team on 1300 797 363.
Newsletter 24 February 2023(PDF, 2MB)
Newsletter 17 March 2023(PDF, 1MB)
Newsletter 14 April 2023(PDF, 794KB)
Newsletter 12 May 2023(PDF, 2MB)
Newsletter 8 July 2023(PDF, 1MB)
If you would like to receive the newsletter via email please complete this form.
More than $8M worth of repairs to flood-damaged infrastructure has so far been identified throughout the Pyrenees Shire, and the list is continuing to grow as further inspections and estimates are completed. For the latest updates please visit our Repairs to infrastructure page.
If you have been affected by the floods, please call Council on 1300 797 363 to be put in contact with our dedicated recovery team. Alternatively, you can call the Flood Recovery Hotline on 1800 560 760.
Flood Recovery Hotline
The Victorian Government has a Flood Recovery Hotline that is coordinated through Windermere Services. Visit
www.vic.gov.au/october-2022-flood-recovery or call 1800 560 760 for the latest information or assistance with:
- navigating available supports
- clean-up
- free structural assessments
- temporary accommodation
- mental health and wellbeing support
The recovery hotline is open from 8.00am-6.00pm Monday to Friday, and 10.00am to 6.00pm Saturday and Sunday. Need an interpreter? Call the hotline on 1800 560 760 and press 9
Windermere Services staff, through the Recovery Hotline, are available to provide support to residents who have been affected by the 2022 floods. Windermere is a community support service and the friendly and understanding recovery support caseworkers will work with residents to help navigate the various support services that may be available to them. Find out more about Windermere.
Council is putting landholders in touch with Landmate, for help repairing flood-damaged fencing. Please contact Council's Flood Recovery Team on 1300 797 363 to be referred.
Looking after yourself
Emergencies such as floods can be disruptive and stressful, and the recovery process can take time. Whether you have been directly impacted, volunteering or supporting others, it’s really important to look after yourself. Some great tips for self care are:
· Spend time with people who care
· Give yourself time
· Try to keep a routine going ie. Eating, sleeping, work, study
· Set realistic goals that keep you motivated, but don’t take on too much.
· Talk about how you feel (the ups and downs) with friends, family and health professionals, when you are ready.
David Younger, clinical psychologist and natural disaster expert provides some great tips on looking after yourself. Watch this short 2 minute video here
More tips are available on the Beyond Blue website www.beyondblue.org.au/mental-health/natural-disasters-and-your-mental-health.
You can call Council on 1300 797 363 to organise the collection of flood-damaged carpet and household furniture.
If possible, move these items onto an open space, like your nature-strip, for collection. Please do not put normal household waste with flood-damaged items.
Council cannot collect building material such as, bricks and rubble, timber framing, panelling or trim, plasterboard, cement sheet, glass or any hazardous materials.
Council can arrange to have a skip dropped off if required, so please let us know if you need it.
Be careful when assessing and working with flood-impacted property and waste. Floods can cause harmful materials, such as asbestos, to shift or react.
If floodwaters have affected your property your septic tank system may also be affected, potentially impacting your health and the health of your family. Ensure children and pets are kept away from wastewater affected areas and do not use or flush your toilet until you know that the septic tank system is intact.
If your sceptic system is damaged, please call a plumber for assistance.
For more information on floods and sceptic tanks please visit the Victorian Department of Health.
VicSES Local Flood Guides and Sandbagging Guide can help you better understand your flood risk, how flood warnings work and how to prepare yourself, your home or your business.
The Pyrenees Shire Flood Recovery Plan 2022 (adopted by Council on 21st February 2022) has been developed to coordinate the flood recovery activities. The Plan is broken up into two parts; 1. summary of the flooding events over October and November 2022 and 2. the action plan. You can view or download the full Plan by clicking on this link(PDF, 1MB).
A summary on the progress of actions so far is available here(PDF, 571KB)