Gulf leaders call for urgent government action for flood-hit businesses

North West Queensland Regional Organisation of Councils chair and Carpentaria Shire mayor Jack Bawden said the flooding was having an overwhelming impact on communities across the Gulf as they battle ongoing rain, rising waters and isolation stretching back months.

"Every sector of the community is in dire need and deserving of the government's full responses," Cr Bawden said.

"While some welcome initial disaster relief and loan schemes have been activated, we need our state and federal leaders to move urgently with targeted support ready to go right across our communities, not wait for the flood waters to go down.

"Our people, industry, and local business have all suffered catastrophic loss with flooding. The impact just continues to multiply by prolonged isolation - here in Normanton we're closing in on 10 weeks."

Cr Bawden said while they were no strangers to the wet and being isolated, and prepared to respond, the prolonged situation and unprecedented flood levels this year had really knocked them.

Aerial assessments are beginning to reveal significant stock losses in the wake of the record flooding.

While most company spokespeople say it is still too difficult to accurately assess what cattle have survived, and what have been taken by crocodiles or been swept out to sea, flyovers are showing considerable numbers floating or trying to swim.

That comes in the wake of the evacuation of 80 of Burketown's residents after 533mm of rain fell across the Nicholson, Gregory and Leichhardt river catchments in the 48 hours to Thursday morning, sparking major flooding in Doomadgee, Burketown and surrounding areas.

The Gregory River surpassed the 1971 flood record of 10.8 metres, reaching a total of 18 metres on Thursday.

Burketown's sewage and water treatment plants were compromised and water had entered 37 houses, and the Queensland Police Service is saying it is still unsafe for displaced people to return to their homes.

Lloyd and Wendy Hick at Thorntonia Station north of Camooweal are typical of many who have had water in places never seen before, and who haven't been able to assess the state of their stock yet.

They are describing themselves as fortunate despite having a metre of water through their house for only the second time since 2004, and between 500 and 600mm of rain.

"It was a miserable few days, with cyclonic winds, but our stock had full bellies and they seem to be OK, thanks to the hills and ridges and trees they could get to," Ms Hick said. "We are feeling heartbroken for our friends and community to the north, and possibly the south, that are having a dreadful time."

When floodwaters started entering buildings at Thorntonia on Wednesday, the Hicks and their staff, 11 people in all, congregated at the barbecue area.

"It was a very miserable place to be," Ms Hick said. "We were all wondering where the water would pull up."

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Politicians are also urgently calling for state and federal government to drastically scale up disaster relief arrangements in Burketown and other parts of the Gulf.

Opposition spokesperson for Northern Australia, Susan McDonald was scathing in her assessment of the response to date, saying she had spoken to federal Emergency Management Minister Murray Watt and urged him to get the army involved to drop feed for cattle.

"We need Chinook helicopters dropping fodder, and if the army is to be deployed, we need mechanics to help restore power from farm generators and diesel fitters to get farm vehicles going again, both of which have been underwater," she said. "There aren't enough services in the north west for this to happen using local businesses alone."

Opposition Emergency Management spokesperson Perin Davey agreed, noting that in Opposition, Labor was very quick to point out the fact volunteers were using their own boats to evacuate people in Lismore, but helicopter mustering contractors doing exactly the same thing in Burketown had heard nothing of substance from either government.

"In 2019, the Coalition government quickly declared a disaster, authorising non-means tested payments of $1000 per adult and $400 per child. We didn't need to wait for the state government and had the fastest rollout of disaster recovery payments through Centrelink that we'd ever seen," she said.

"Further, we allocated $3.1 billion over five years for replenishing stock, repairing farm infrastructure, boosting mental health services, fixing roads and making them more resilient, to name just a few."

Katter's Australian Party leader and Traeger MP Robbie Katter described the hardship payments of $180 for individuals and $900 for families currently being offered by the state government as a nice gesture, but pointless.

"The funds are the government acknowledging that these people need help," he said.

"But for people who have lost everything, $180 is a useless amount.

"People affected in the Townsville floods in 2019, or the Brisbane floods last year were offered $1000 per adult or $400 per child in addition to the $180 with barely any questions asked.

"So far however, no such figures have risen to offer assistance to people of the north west.

"I'd like to know why it seems that people living up in the Gulf are worth less."

Mr Katter said he was pushing for the federal government's program offering Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements to consider Burke, Carpentaria and Doomadgee Shires as a Category C, which releases such funds to these areas.

Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements mean that residents isolated by flooding in communities such as Camooweal, 190km north west of Mount Isa, can now access Personal Hardship Assistance of $180 for individuals and up to $900 for a family of five or more, to cover the costs of essential items such as food, clothing and medicine.

The Essential Services Safety and Reconnection Scheme has also been activated for Camooweal residents, a means-tested relief measure to help uninsured homeowners repair damaged services like electricity, gas and water.

Primary producers in Burke, Carpentaria, Cloncurry, Doomadgee and Mount Isa shires are eligible for freight subsidies of up to $5000 to move stock, feed, machinery and other operational necessities.

A total of 41 local government areas have access to DRFA support in response to the current monsoonal rainfall and flooding.

Federal Minister for Emergency Management Murray Watt said the assistance measures would support North Queenslanders with their immediate recovery from the floods.

"With some northern residents currently cut off by floods, we're activating these support measures to help them through this tough stretch," Senator Watt said.

"This financial assistance is going straight to Queenslanders in need and will allow them to get back on their feet after floodwaters subside.

"Freight subsidies of up to $5000 are also being extended to primary producers in heavily impacted areas like Burke, Carpentaria, Cloncurry, Doomadgee and Mount Isa, so they can keep the wheels of their businesses turning."

Queensland Emergency Services Minister Mark Ryan said the support measures would help "some of our most remote Queensland residents and the primary producers that operate in these parts".

"We'll continue working closely with the federal government to keep support coming for flood-impacted communities across Queensland, and I thank all our frontline services for their ongoing efforts in response to this severe weather," he said.

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