Residents in New South Wales' far north know first-hand how devastating major flooding can be. They're desperate to avoid losing their homes and businesses. Residents in Murwillumbah and Tumbulgum are doing their final preparations.
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00:00They're all completely drilled to the wall.
00:04Moolumbar resident Sarah Robertson is used to preparing for disaster.
00:09Building everything in, that's the trick, because anything that's large enough to float,
00:14it will.
00:15Mud still clings to the ceiling of her garage three years after floodwaters swept through
00:20her property.
00:21You can still see the mud on the floorboards.
00:24She spent the day moving her valuables into this nearby motel.
00:28This is, I think, our fifth or sixth flood evacuation visit.
00:33But knowing what to expect hasn't made it any easier.
00:36Our children have only known floods.
00:39Riley, he just turned 11 on Tuesday, and we've been having floods for 10 years now, so it's
00:49been his whole life, so it's terrible that they get used to disaster.
00:56Cane farmer Robert Quirk is all too aware of the damage Mother Nature can cause.
01:01You can probably see the water starting to pour into the farm.
01:05Heavy flooding in 2022 nearly ruined his crops.
01:10Well over $100,000, we've lost income, it's not good.
01:15Some people are really struggling to come out of this.
01:18As flood warnings came through, many fled to higher ground.
01:22To Bulgham Centre, virtually a ghost town as residents hunkered down.
01:27It's been a slow burn.
01:29We've had many days warning and we don't know how high the river's going to go.
01:34The Northern Rivers is known for its resilience, but as it prepares for its third potential
01:40major flood in just eight years, some are questioning the future of building in the
01:46region altogether.
01:49We're concerned that you can't put other people at risk, or you can't keep filling up the
01:54flood plain because it's cheap to develop and easy.
01:59A sleepless night ahead for a region that's been through it all before.