Our great southern land is changing. Extreme weather events are rapidly increasing in both duration and frequency, and our communities are taking the hit. Australian homes are becoming increasingly vulnerable due to the effects of climate change, and with each wild event devastating towns and cities, it is also impacting the health and wellbeing of its residents. Nowhere is this more evident than in Queensland.
Queensland couple John and Drucia know all too well how it feels when faced with a major flood. “It just kept raining and raining,” said John and Drucia, who were impacted by the 2019 Townsville floods. “We kept watching every day — it kept getting heavier and heavier. There were no breaks. It just was a continued belt of rain.”
Tash and Vince thought they were right during the 2011 Brisbane floods, but they didn’t realise the impact it was going to have. “We started to see the water rising at the back, and it just kept rising,” says Tash. “By this time, I had four phone calls from my boss saying get out of your house and I was like ‘no, she’ll be right’ — but no, we weren’t.”
By the end of the flood, Tash and Vince found the tide mark was at least
