Almost all summer long, the East Coast of Australia has experienced far higher rainfall than average, but over the past two weeks, downpours have reached near-record levels, leading to some of the worst floods in Queensland and NSW in decades. Thousands of people have been forced to leave their homes and as of the time of publication, hundreds remain unaccounted for due to power and communications outages and severe weather conditions that are stretching emergency services to their limits.
It’s understandable that we are all likely to feel powerless when facing such a monumental natural disaster, but there are ways you can do your part to support communities that have been impacted by these rising floods. And with yet more heavy rain predicted in the coming days, driven by this year’s powerful La Niña weather event, the time to act is now.
What you can do to help
While your instinct may be to travel to impacted areas to physically offer assistance, adding more people into a high-risk situation can put further strain on frontline responders. However, floods can cause significant losses of shelter and essential possessions, and donating money can help cover the cost of such losses for victims. Via a third-party giving platform like Good 2 Give, you can donate to multiple organisations at once. If you prefer to donate to specific charities, here are some that are providing relief to the victims of the Qld and NSW floods:
The Foundation for Rural Regional Renewal
The RSPCA (to support animal shelters)
Please note that in general, clothes or groceries are not appropriate donations unless charity organisations are specifically requesting them, as processing these donations and sorting them for distribution can be time-consuming and prohibitively expensive. So, if you want to offer your support to people who need it right now, please do so through your wallet.
If you or someone you know has been impacted by floods, you can access support, resources and emergency relief via the NSW Council of Social Assistance, the NSW State Emergency Services or the Queensland Government.