EDITORIAL: Australia’s weather extremes matched by resilience

The pictures tell the story best.

Serene waterfalls turned into furious rivers in the sky.

Main streets now canals. Vast landscapes underwater.

Homes and businesses too, inundated.

Then there are the faces — that’s where the real story is told.

The terror and relief on the faces of those who have had to be winched to safety by helicopter.

The grim realisation on the faces of the residents of flooded homes that their lives have been altered.

And the exhaustion and steely determination on faces of the thousands of SES volunteers who have answered the calls for help.

There have been thousands of such calls the past week as floodwaters ripped their way through NSW’s Mid-North Coast, devastating towns including Taree. That includes more than 700 flood rescues.

And the crisis isn’t over.

Wild weather has lashed Sydney too, closing roads and wreaking havoc on public transport. Western parts of the city are on watch as river levels rise, bringing with them the risk of minor flooding. Residents in low-lying areas of some suburbs have been told to be ready to evacuate.

Authorities are eyeing Warragamba Dam on the edge of the Blue Mountains as it nears capacity.

More than 9000 people are under evacuation warnings, and 50,000 isolated across the State.

Tragically, four people are dead. Another man is missing.

Anthony Albanese and NSW Premier Chris Minns were in Maitland on Friday, a plan to visit Taree deferred due to inaccessibility.

The Prime Minister pledged

“We know this is an incredibly tough time and the heart of Australians goes out to those people who are going through this difficult period,” he said.

“But the rest of Australia stands with you as well and will provide whatever support is necessary.”

Speaking on radio earlier in the day, Mr Minns praised the army of SES volunteers, without whom he said there could have been “500 deaths”.

“Every single one of them was a volunteer … incredible people doing incredible things for strangers.”

It is a tragic reality that these severe weather events are becoming more and more frequent. Parts of the east coast are still recovering from Cyclone Alfred in March.

In 2022, the Insurance Council of Australia estimated that one in 25 adult Australians had been affected by storms and floods in the previous three years, natural disasters which resulted in more than $12 billion in claims.

This latest flooding will trigger yet more claims and is likely to drive up premiums further. Mr Albanese said that was a challenge Australia would need to deal with.

The immediate focus however will be on the clean-up.

It has already begun in some parts.

Australia is a nation of weather extremes. It is also a nation of extreme resilience.

Communities will meet this challenge as they have met so many before. They will look after those members who need it.

They will recover, and do what is possible to prepare for the next such challenge.