MITCHELL Shire Council unanimously carried a detailed fire recovery plan which is aimed to provide recovery efforts through to June 2028.
The plan identified five key aims, including support for mental health and access to services to recovery, restoring the environment and biodiversity, assisting local businesses to recover from the economic disruption caused by the fires, Aboriginal culture and healing, and repairing roads and infrastructure damaged in the fires.
The plan also identified key improvements for the preparedness of council for the next fire event, including improving communication, while the plan also looked for council to support grants and financial assistance.
Councillor Andrea Pace said Mitchell Shire was working carefully with other councils to support people who have been displaced.
“I’d just like to say that this is still an ongoing issue. Coming into winter, we still have people that are not housed in the fire areas. We are working very closely with the other shires and the community to try and get in things that are needed in time,” she said.
Cr Nathan Clark said it was a detailed piece which showcased a complete plan of what was to come to support people over the next two years.
“This is absolutely fantastic, what’s been put together here. I think it’s an exemplar for local government in terms of putting together a plan to manage the aftermath of a disaster like this,” he said.
“A couple of things that are in there that are worth looking at. On page five, there’s a picture that shows the scale of the fire, absolutely massive, and what an amazing job the CFA and volunteers have done in managing that and also recovering from it.
“We’re looking at a couple of years, this is not something that comes and goes, it impacts people for years, and sometimes if you have really poor fortune, it could be generationally impacting as well.
“We looked at the fire impacting over 4700 hectares over Mitchell Shire and neighbouring shires and the loss of 11 dwellings, over 4800 livestock and extensive damage to fencing.
“This plan outlines the coordinated municipal operations across not just Council, but adjacent organisations through to June 30, 2028, so that’s how far forward it’s looking.”
Cr Bob Humm said the plan, in supporting it, needed to have a close eye kept on it to ensure the actions were all followed.
“Looking at the plan itself, it sets out 65 actions, and I hope we keep an eye on all those actions. I don’t want it to be like the 2009 fires that destroyed a lot of areas in our Shire, that a lot of those plans have probably 30 per cent of it done,” he said.
“There’s a lot of other plans that need to be fixed up as we move forward. It’s a long way back, but all I can say to the people who have been affected, there is a light at the end of the tunnel and just keep pushing towards it.”
After the motion was passed unanimously, Mayor Councillor John Dougall said he appreciated the work of officers.
“I’d like to echo a lot of those sentiments, particularly appreciate the work of the Council officers to not only work with the community, but to put together a really impressive recovery plan,” he said.
