Queensland floods – One year on

13 January 2012

Queenslanders will never forget the loss and devastation caused by the floods of January 2011.  It has been a long road to recovery for so many people whose lives were turned upside down by the one of the biggest natural disasters our state has ever seen.

We remember those who lost their lives and pay tribute to the remarkable fighting spirit of many Queenslanders who have overcome this tragedy to piece their lives back together.

Over the past 12 months, the recovery and reconstruction effort has brought out the best in our community.

• 9170km of roads were damaged and 8482km of those have been repaired and rebuilt. 183,448 tonnes of bitumen will be needed to finish this job – that's more than 7,300 bitumen tankers.
• 411 schools affected are open, all 89 damaged bridges and culverts have been recovered, many with permanent repairs underway, and of the 138 National Parks that were damaged, all are now opened or partially opened.
• A total of $3.6 billion of National Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements (NDRRA) funding is in use and hundreds of projects are now underway in every corner of the state.
• NDRRA funding has also helped 5,457 small businesses with $75.9 million and 9,076 primary producers with $174 million in funding and assisted 433 businesses through a special business recovery program.

In Brisbane and Ipswich over 10,500 homes have been repaired or are being repaired and in areas such as Roma and Emerald over 95% of affected homes have been fixed. $280.9 million had been paid out by the Premier's Disaster Relief Appeal assisting over 40,000 people.

Of that, $2.835 million was used in the Lockyer Valley Land Swap Project to move residents of Grantham onto higher ground after the devastating floods there.

We got knocked down. But in getting back up again Queenslanders inspired each other, our nation and the world.

Read more:

• Queensland marks first anniversary of floods
• Lockyer Valley and Grantham communities pause to remember and reflect
• Ipswich remembers the floods a year on
• Premier announces permanent tribute to Brisbane’s mud army