The 2021 Floodings Erica Longhurst - University of New South Wales (V) The recent floods in New South Wales showed us that, more than ever, we must brace ourselves for unexpected environmental events. In Port Macquarie, a multitude of events over the last year-and-a-half have been described as ‘unprecedented’ or ‘devastating’ — be it the 2019 droughts, the bushfires, the pandemic, or now, the floods. In the face of these climaterelated disasters, it therefore seems just that we look to ‘A New Frontier’ to protect the interests and health of rural Australians. Our beautiful country is no stranger to extreme and adverse weather events. We are, after all, the land of ‘fire and flood’. There is no denying, however, the increased frequency and severity of these once freak weather events. The MidNorth Coast was one of the most affected regions in the 2021 floods. The flooding began around the middle of March, and affected everywhere from the North Coast to the City of Sydney. It was described by Gladys Berejiklian, the Premier of New South Wales, as a ‘one in a hundred year event’, and ‘the worst flooding in 60 years.’ Communities in Queensland and Victoria were also affected by heavy rainfall as well. The Australian Government declared many parts of the East Coast as a natural disaster zone. Over 18,000 people were forced to evacuate, and over a thousand required flood rescue1. This event occurred less than 18 months after Australia was affected by the ‘Black Summer’ fires of 2019. Unfortunately, a lot of towns that were just starting to recover from the bushfires were hit. In my area of the Mid-North Coast, there was a series of mind-boggling events throughout the middle of March. Amongst others, a house 1. Emma Elsworthy. NSW flooding forces 18,000 people to evacuate, schools closed, workers told to stay home [Internet]. [place unknown]: Australian Broadcasting Corporation; 2021 [updated 2021; cited 2021 May 16]. Available from: https://www.abc.net.au/news/202103-22/nsw-flooding-forces-evacuations-and-schoolclosures/13266072 2. Rolfe MI, Pit SW, McKenzie JW, Longman J, Matthews V, Bailie R, et al. Social vulnerability in a high-risk floodaffected rural region of NSW, Australia. Natural Hazards. 2020;101(3):631-50. doi: 10.1007/s11069-020-03887-z.
was seen floating adrift down the Manning River in Taree, and a bride and groom had to be helicoptered out of Wingham to attend their own wedding. So many different events occurred all around the region, and everyone was affected in unique ways. I have been on medical placement at Port Macquarie, and was on my Paediatrics placement at the time. In my fourth week, I did a newborn check on a baby girl with lovely parents. This little girl’s ‘baby check,’ which should be performed within the first 72 hours of life, was delayed by six days. This was because they had been completely isolated from their house, and had to stay at a hotel in Wauchope. It was tough to think that only a few days prior to this young girl’s birth, the father had been trying to salvage valuables from their flooding house. When I chatted with them, they said that their baby was a gift, and that having her was worth all that they had been through. This really affected me as they were such a young family. They lived out on a farm, and so their entire crop was flooded, and their livelihood ruined. Although floods aren’t foreign to this region, this was something that no one had ever seen before. Other stories popped up from around the hospital. As I talked with my fellow students, I learned there was a platelet shortage, as the plane transporting replenishments couldn’t land on the flooded runway. The wards were ‘flooded’ with patients, with some people having no viable home to return to. This particularly affected patients in the Mental Health ward, where extended stays were associated with increased distress. Patients were also arriving with very delayed clinical presentations, as a result of being trapped by the flooding.
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