Cows dead on beaches, beehives destroyed: Locals 'numb' after NSW flood devastation
Fifth-generation dairy farmer James Neal from Oxley Island, just east of Taree, told SBS he knew of nearly a hundred local dairy farmers impacted. "It's such a desperate situation, unprecedented in that any plan you had just went straight out the window," said. "It's been really stressful for everyone involved. "This is going to take a huge mental toll on farmers for sure. It's upsetting."
Emotions are still raw as the community grapples with the distressing loss of both animals and property. Neal was one of hundreds who also had to be rescued when water rose rapidly on Tuesday night, catching many off guard. "I had to get rescued at our own house and there were so many calls, SES was so under the pump," he said. "We had a friend rescue us and some other people up to their waist in water sitting on a table. "All our houses for our staff went under water as well."
Neal said many farmers in the area made contingency plans for moving stock to higher ground after major flooding in 2021, but those areas were under water by half a metre this week. "In 2021, we had a flood that was recognised as one in 100. This year they're saying this is a one-in-500-year flood because all those areas that were normally flood-free are not flood-free anymore," Neal said. "Cows just got washed away and basically got caught on fences. I've got heaps of photos of stock that has washed up and they're not even local ones, they've come from upriver where obviously people thought they were on flood free paddocks and they just weren't."
According to WeatherZone, Oxley Island received 279 millimetres of rain on Tuesday alone, 500 millimetres over three days — equivalent to eight months' worth of rain. Neal said they weren't warned of the severity of the weather event, and modelling didn't reflect how much rain ultimately came. He and many more on the island have been isolated for days without power and struggling to tend to their livestock that have survived with feed washed away and equipment destroyed.
According to Neal, dairy cows also need to be milked every 24 hours, but that is proving a nearly impossible task in current conditions. Laura Polson, part of one of Oxley Island's biggest dairy farming families, has also been isolated on her property, trying to keep animals alive. "Sadly, a lot of calves have been lost but we were able to hoist this white calf up out of the water and have been feeding it bread, milk and weet-bix," she told SBS on Thursday. "My dad, brother and sister have made huge efforts to protect our cows and calves on other parts of the island but it's unknown how those cows are doing."
Commercial beekeeper Colin Broos keeps hundreds of hives on Oxley Island and says he's lost most of them in the flood. "Pretty devastating. I've lost 40 to 50 per cent of my income. Just like that, gone." "We had the droughts in 2019, we were all affected by bushfires, lost hives there, a lot of people did. Then we had the floods in '21, then we had Varroa Mite, and now we've got this. It's pretty tough."
He was ferried across flooded pastures on a friend's boat to assess the damage to his hives. "This is next level. We did not expect this. There were no warnings … nobody knew how bad this was going to get. It's taken us by completely by surprise." "We're a bit numb at the moment actually."
Other Oxley Island farmers like Lee Fieldhouse say it's going to be a 'tough winter' for everyone in the area. "From an animal perspective, the pastures are in trouble and a lot of hay has been lost, the soil has been lost as well," Fieldhouse said. "Because [the flood] is so late, it'll take a very long time to dry out this time of year. "There's going to be a lot of people that have lost everything."
He has been reaching isolated friends by canoe, delivering supplies to keep spirits up. "I've done the bread and milk run and beer and ciggies. All the essentials."
Sherinah Peck is one of likely hundreds of people whose homes have been completely flooded and who have lost nearly everything. Already facing the challenge of rebuilding a destroyed home, Peck was injured by a distressed cow while searching the beach for missing belongings that washed away during the flood.
She had to travel two hours south to hospital in Newcastle with a suspected broken leg, because the nearest public hospital in Taree was still cut off by floodwater. "Taree is only 15 minutes away from where I live but I couldn't get to that hospital," Peck said. "I have to have surgery… for them to put in a plate and screws." The lack of a public hospital in Forster-Tuncurry has been the subject of debate for several years.
On Tuesday, local member Tanya Thompson told SBS it was a serious problem. "I called on the premier to do a stand up hospital in Forster because people in that area don't have access to public health at the moment, that's a concern," Thompson said. "If something happens, where do they go? Our paramedics are stretched. We're in a whole world of pain here. "We don't want any further trauma here; we are already traumatised enough."
Peck has appealed to her community to look out for things that have been washed from her home, including one with deep sentimental value. "I am after one particular item, that means the world to me and that's my mum's bike if anyone finds that I'll be so grateful," she said. "Her bike – Betsy – was everything." Many others have lost everything, and donations have begun to pour in to support those in need. Four people have died in the flooding disaster.
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