Now that the waters have receded and the time of highest risk has passed, we would like to shine a light on the incredible efforts of our South and Central Queensland NDIS Support Coordination teams during the February rain event.
Combined, these two teams cover what were some of the worst-affected regions, with the Southern team also working across South-East QLD and northern New South Wales and the Central team covering Gympie.
The day the flooding started, the teams worked together to contact 1377 participants, checking in to ensure they had safety plans in place for the weekend.
Our Support Coordinators and Office Coordinator team worked together to put participants first, carrying on with the job while many of them had their own developing situations at home, with rising water and the prospect of access to their own properties being cut off.
After participants had been reached, the teams contacted relevant guardians to inform them of the safety plans.
Anyone who didn’t have a safety plan or wasn’t confident executing their safety plan was reported to the State Emergency Services (SES) and/or the Queensland Police Service (QPS).
By the Monday, the extent of the damage became clear. Our NDIS teams were short more than 20 team members who had been personally affected by the floods. The remaining team members still managed to check in with every participant again to ensure they were OK, and continue safety planning for the days the water remained high.
One Mercy team member who lives on a property in the Laidley area lost everything and was still back at work a few days later supporting participants. Other team members lost cars, experienced flooding throughout the downstairs areas of their homes, and again only took a couple of days off, showing their dedication to the people they support and their colleagues.
The teams also support some participants who are currently homeless and by working closely with both the SES and QPS, they were able to find emergency accommodation for these people.
A really big shout-out to everyone who did what they could during this emergency, demonstrating compassion and integrity, and going above and beyond in every way.
