Responding to Floods in the Illawarra, NSW

During April, record rainfall across the coast of NSW caused landslips and overwhelmed creek and river systems. About 100 homes were inundated by flash flooding as emergency services worked around the clock to remove debris. The Illawarra region south of Sydney was amongst the hardest hit with forceful floods impacting 31 homes. In comparison to other natural disasters, floods often incur the heaviest financial burden for families. So far more than 10,000 claims have been made to insurance.

On 9 April, Samaritan’s Purse Australian Disaster Relief personnel spent the day in Wollongong and the surrounding suburbs to assess the needs in the community. While walking through several affected streets, the team handed disaster recovery kits to residents. Each kit contains a bucket, mop, broom and cleaning chemicals to assist residents with the clean up. Our team had the opportunity to assist one family to remove flooded debris and displaced mud to restore order to their backyard.

Dan Stephens, Australian Disaster Relief Manager with Samaritan’s Purse, was able to share the reason for our presence in the region with local news outlet WIN Illawarra:

“We just want to give back to the community. Most of the people we are out here helping are having the worst day of their lives. It’s so hard to see all of your belongings out on the street. They just need someone to come and help with the physical stuff, but also to place an arm around them to let them know it’s going to be all right.”

Watch the WIN News video on Facebook.

Whenever disaster strikes domestically or internationally, Samaritan’s Purse is amongst the first to respond to bring hope through practical assistance in Jesus’ Name.

Please continue praying for the residents of the Illawarra region and communities around NSW who have been impacted by the recent flooding.