The Hon Mark Dreyfus QC MP
Attorney-General
Minister for Emergency Management
The Hon Jack Dempsey MP
Queensland Minister for Police and Community Safety
Joint Media Release
More disaster assistance for central and southern Queensland
Attorney-General and Minister for Emergency Management Mark Dreyfus QC MP and Queensland Minister for Police and Community Safety Jack Dempsey today extended disaster assistance to seven more local government areas affected by recent severe weather.
Councils in the local government areas of Balonne and Maranoa are now eligible for assistance following Tropical Cyclone Oswald.
In addition, Central Highlands, Gladstone, Moreton Bay, Somerset and Toowoomba are now eligible for assistance for flooding between 25 February and 3 March 2013. This assistance is provided under the jointly funded Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements (NDRRA) to restore damaged essential public assets.
We want to help communities get back on their feet as quickly as possible following the recent severe weather that has caused so much damage, Mr Dreyfus said.
This assistance provides local councils with support to undertake immediate clean-up and recovery activities and to aid medium to longer-term restoration efforts, Mr Dempsey said.
The Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements can include assistance for extraordinary disaster management costs, emergent public health and safety matters, private debris clearing, evacuation costs, evacuation centres and consumables.
Further information on natural disaster recovery assistance can be found at www.qraa.qld.gov.au or www.disasterassist.gov.au
The Commonwealth and Queensland Governments will continue to assess the impact of these events on affected communities and can extend assistance under the Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements to other areas as required, Mr Dreyfus said.
THURSDAY, 14 MARCH 2013
