Yarra Ranges Local - August 2021

YR LOCAL

August 2021

Edition:40

3

7

Where to get help

Storm response turns to recovery

4

State Government clean-up program

A message from the Mayor

In the month since the storms hit our region, we’ve seen a phenomenal, heartening response from our community.

Countless community members, even those experiencing the worst impacts of the storms, have stepped into the fold - setting up and providing donations, giving out coffee and food for those doing it rough through local businesses and even opening their homes and offering what they could to people around them.

We’ve heard stories of people offering what they have – so many gestures of support and assistance, helping our community to pull together during such an awful time.

There’s been a phenomenal response from relief agencies and local businesses, including the Red Cross, which came out at the request of council and worked at our direction. They brought staff out immediately to support community members with conversations and welfare checks, and the locals that set up community relief sites for their community.

There are more people, group, agencies and businesses that have contributed to the storm response than we could ever begin to name, but what I wanted to say in this column is simple – thank you.

Your time, your effort and your support has meant the world for so many.

Of course, the clean-up work is continuing. Our crews are continuing to work on more than 2000 requests and we’ve established community hubs in Olinda and Kalorama for ongoing community support.

Thankfully, power is back on for most people in the hills and the recovery work is getting underway. AusNet services and agencies have put in an incredible amount of work to repair and rebuild flattened infrastructure over the last month to achieve this.

We know there has been significant distress in the community. So many are living through a traumatic event and though the immediate storm response is winding up, the long-term recovery for the region will be a long road.

When you encounter other people in the community – whether they’re at a relief centre, behind the counter of a café, working on the side of the road or passing you in the supermarket – remember that we’re all still navigating a difficult time. A little understanding with others can go more than an extra mile.

If you’re having a hard time, just know that there’s always people who can help.

If there’s anything you need, please give us a call on 1300 368 333 and we’ll do our best to help or connect you with people who can.

Fiona McAllister, Mayor of Yarra Ranges

Front cover storm photo and back cover photos by Amber Williams Photography

2

In the Yarra Valley, we had significant flooding – particularly around Yarra Glen....

...residents would be kept at the heart of the ongoing recovery...

“

Photo by Amber Williams Photography

Storm response turns to recovery Community recovery from the 9 June storms is getting underway, with homes now reconnected to power and hundreds of tonnes of tree debris being collected.

“It’s taken several weeks of round-theclock work to restore essential services and make the area as safe as possible for community members and visitors.

members would be able to make choices, using Council funding, to help build resilience and wellbeing as we begin the long recovery from COVID-19,” she said.

Tens of thousands of community members were left without power, roads were made inaccessible and many homes were damaged on Wednesday, 9 June, when the region experienced heavy rain and winds of up to 120km per hour.

“The long-term work is really just beginning, to dispose of hundreds of tonnes of branches, logs and tree debris.

“We know now that the community has a lot more to recover from than we originally planned, and we’re looking at how the committees can inform our decisions and activities regarding the pandemic and the eventual storm recovery.

Yarra Ranges Mayor, Fiona McAllister, said the storm impacted every part of the region in different ways.

“In the Yarra Valley, we had significant flooding – particularly around Yarra Glen; the urban areas experienced power loss and the Dandenong Ranges had a significant amount of trees fall, causing long-term power loss and an unfathomable amount of damage to community and public infrastructure,” Cr McAllister said.

“For almost everyone impacted, we know there was a financial impact in terms of loss of work and groceries, and an emotional impact, whether it be trauma from the experience or the challenges of living without common amenities such as power for long periods of time.

“We’ve started our Special Storm Event Tree Branch Collection to assist residents to clear some of the large branches from their properties, and will be making mulch from that material available for community members to use for their home gardens.”

Tree branches put out for collection should be up to 200mm by 2m in length – roughly the width of a football and no longer than what could fit in a standard trailer.

For information about mulch pick-up sites, visit yarraranges.vic.gov.au/2021storm

“Until then, we know there will be many people out there who have a long road ahead, with repairs, rebuilding and getting reacquainted in their community after such a distressing event.

“I would encourage anyone who needs a hand – whether that’s Planning advice, material or financial support or referral on to another agency – to give us a call on 1300 368 333.”

Cr McAllister said that residents would be kept at the heart of the ongoing recovery, with Community Recovery Committees being formed to help with storm and pandemic recovery.

“The Community Recovery Committees were originally slated as a pandemic recovery measure – where community

For more information about support in the aftermath of the storms, turn to page 7.

3

Tree clean-up continues, as State Government program opens In the aftermath of the 9 June storms, Council is working to remove dangerous trees from public land, prune back others, clean debris and follow up inspection requests.

Trees Team has also been undertaking proactive inspections of trees in the Dandenongs and in areas of the Yarra Valley and our urban region most impacted by the storm.

In the month following the storms, Council has received more than 2400 requests about trees and drainage from community members.

As a result of this, 107 trees have been identified as dangerous and needing either complete removal or removal of branches.

Most of these trees have been identified in Mount Dandenong, Kalorama and Olinda,

Most of these requests have been about trees down on roadsides or inspection requests for public trees.

While working through these requests, our

Branch collection getting underway We know that many community members had trees and debris fall, but won’t be eligible for the current cleanup programs.

From 15 July, for about eight weeks, we will be running a special branch collection for all community members impacted by the storm.

Branches no more than 250mm in width (roughly the width of a football) and shorter than 3m in length (roughly what will fit in an average-sized trailer) will be collected – these should be left in a safe spot outside of your property.

We will mulch all branches collected and provide the mulch to community members at drop-off points.

For more information about these programs, visit yarraranges.vic.gov.au/ stormbranches or call us on 1300 368 333.

4

Our teams are working through requests...

You may notice tree debris, such as wood and branches, left on roadsides in coming weeks and months. We will be returning to clean up areas as priority works finish, however we apologise for any inconvenience debris may cause in the short term.

Our teams are working through requests, with all tasks allocated according to potential risk and urgency.

State Government clean-up program The State Government is running a cleanup program for community members who have hazardous trees on private land, or whose buildings or vehicles have been damaged.

Community members with potentiallyhazardous trees, which are within falling distance of structures or places of access (such as driveways) can also apply to have the trees assessed.

If your property – including residential homes and sheds, commercial and public buildings or other outbuildings – was damaged in the storms on 9 and 10 June, you can apply to the State Government to have the damaged property or structures demolished and removed at no cost.

For fallen trees on private property that haven’t damaged or destroyed a structure, VicForests is offering to provide property owners with advice or an assessment on whether the material might be suitable to be used for timber products.

The program will also remove vehicles damaged beyond repair and any hazardous or dangerous materials or trees posing a threat.

Please visit yarraranges.vic.gov.au/stormclean-up for more information.

Photo by Amber Williams Photography

Partnership at the core of storm response Council has been working closely with the likes of Bushfire Recovery Victoria, Victoria Police, SES, Department of Families, Fairness and Housing, Red Cross, Victorian Council of Churches - Emergency Ministries (VCC-EM), The Salvation Army, AusNet Services and Department of Transport (VicRoads) in response to the storm event.

Some of these agencies have been operating out of Council offices in Lilydale, so all organisations could work together to provide immediate relief for affected communities.

More than 1,300 home visits have been made by Red Cross volunteers, Australian Defence Force and VCC-EM: checking in on residents to see what they are in need of; passing on key information from Council; and to contact people who may have been uncontactable by AusNet about power restoration and support available.

Other outreach activities so far have included speaking with affected families at Doon Caravan Park, included leaving food parcels with them and providing emergency accommodation when the park had to be evacuated.

Community Meetings Council, emergency services and State Government agencies have hosted several community meetings to provide an update on storm response and answer residents’ questions.

Representatives from Council, Bushfire Recovery Victoria, Victoria Police, the

Continuing to listen to impacted communities...

SES, the Department of Families, Fairness and Housing, AusNet Services and the Department of Transport (VicRoads) attended these meetings in Mount Evelyn, Kalorama and Olinda, while smaller drop-in sessions were also held Lilydale, Yarra Junction, Yarra Glen and Belgrave.

More recently, we’ve held community meetings with partner agencies to hear from the community about what gaps still exist in services, what support can be provided and how the ongoing storm recovery can best serve our community members.

To find out more about the meetings, including recaps and videos recorded during the sessions, visit yarraranges.vic. gov.au

Some of the things you told us included that emergency plans needed to be revisited, rebuilding and temporary housing situations needed to be considered, ongoing connectivity to telecommunications in storms was a concern and that wood collected from fallen trees should be re-purposed to help with recovery in impacted communities.

We’ll also be assisting with recovery through: • Establishing and supporting Community Recovery Committees identify and implement local recovery priorities • Advocating for better telecommunications infrastructure • Helping connect people experiencing homelessness with secure accommodation • Delivering community Mental Aid First Aid Training • Delivering our Buy, Employ, Enjoy Local and Art Attack projects in the community.

• Continuing to listen to impacted communities, to ensure long-term recovery needs are met.

For the latest information, visit yarraranges. vic.gov.au

5

BUY local

eMPLOy local

eNJoy local

YA R R A R A N G E S

Photo by Cathy Ronalds Photography

Buy, Employ and Enjoy Local With a succession of lockdowns and the impact of the June 9 storms, now more than ever our local businesses need our support. We’re encouraging community members to buy, employ and enjoy local over coming months, with travel restrictions winding back and businesses coming back from the storms.

Since March 2020, there has been many periods of upheaval for local businesses – multiple rounds of COVID-19 restrictions and the recent storms have led to uncertain and difficult times for business owners.

Despite this, many local businesses opened their doors and pantries to support the community in the aftermath of the storms, providing food and coffee for locals and emergency workers in a heartening display of solidarity.

Our communities are recovering and supporting our businesses – and by extension, the locals who run and work in them – is crucial.

Council’s Buy Employ Enjoy Local campaign builds on our Be Kind to Business program last year, where we encouraged community members to spare a thought – and a dollar or two, if

6

possible – for local business.

When travel throughout Victoria is possible again, we’d encourage community members to consider exploring close to home – checking out what the Yarra Valley and Dandenong Ranges have to offer, buy local produce and picnic in local parks and check out the beautiful spaces offered by local accommodation providers.

Be mindful that businesses still have some restrictions and limits in place, and many in the Dandenongs are still recovering from the storms. But, without tourist visitation, ongoing support from the community is vital during the ongoing recovery from the pandemic and the storm damage.

When you’ve got a job that needs a tradesperson, an artist or catering, consider employing local wherever you can. The Yarra Ranges is full of talented, qualified and creative people and there’s no shortage of local expertise just a phone call away.

If you’re running a local business, there’s plenty of people in the community looking to fill job vacancies.

To kick off the Buy Employ Enjoy Local

campaign, we’ll soon be launching a jobs portal, where local businesses can list vacancies and community members can keep an eye out for local jobs.

We’ll be promoting the campaign with competitions, reusable ‘Buy Local’ shopping bags and signage throughout communities.

In the meantime, we know that the recovery for the region and for businesses will take a long time.

We’ve waived street trading permits for all businesses in Yarra Ranges until December 2021, and extended permits for outdoor dining for most businesses for free.

We’ve held community meetings with business owners, as well as local residents, and will continue to provide opportunities for businesses and community members to share their stories and help shape the recovery of the region.

Our teams are also available to connect business owners with support, if they’re not sure where to start. Call us on 1300 368 333 and we’ll do our best to help or visit yarraranges.vic.gov.au/business

Where to get help As we move towards recovery across the region, it can be difficult to know where to start and go for assistance.

Below is a short list of places to contact for material support, assistance or advice. If you’re unsure where to go, please give Council a call on 1300 368 333 and we’ll do our best to connect you with the right people.

Whether you need help with services, with supplies or someone to talk to, help will be here through the long haul.

For more information, including links to State Government support, visit yarraranges.vic.gov.au/2021storm

Community Recovery Hubs Karwarra Garden Olinda Community House 79-81 Olinda-Monbulk Road, Olinda

Rear of Kalorama Memorial Reserve 1190-1196 Mount Dandenong Tourist Road, Kalorama

Bushfire Recovery Victoria Storm and Flood Hotline

• • • • • •

Register for Clean-Up on private property Access your own Recovery Support Worker Mental health and wellbeing support Financial counselling support Information on available payments 1800 560 760

Energy and Water Ombudsman Victoria (EWOV) | EWOV

• For resolving complaints about electricity, gas and water companies. Free for Victorian customers.

• www.ewov.com.au | 1800 500509

General Information

• Contact Council Storm Assistance Team 1300 368 333 (Mon – Fri)

Material Aid

• If you are experiencing hardship, information on where to access material aid and other services can be found on www.yarraranges.vic.gov.au/Council/ Coronavirus-Updates/Community-relief-and-support-agencies

Insurance

• Insurance Council of Australia -1800 734 621

nbn

• nbn.com.au/powerblackouts • vicstorms@nbnco.com.au • For up to date information - www.nbnco.com.au/blog/the-nbn-project/ severe-weather-impacting-victoria

Personal Support

• If you, your family or friends need to speak to someone about your/their experiences, need assistance with filling out forms or would like further information call Council on 1300 368 333 or visit a Community Recovery Hub.

Power

• Ausnet assistance with Power Outage Payment and Line Fault - Dial 13 1799

Renters Assistance

• Tenant advice line (03) 9416 2577 M to F 10.00 am – 2.00 pm • tenantsvic.org.au

Telecommunications Industry Ombudsman

• Free and independent phone and internet complaint services • 1800 062 058 | www.tio.com.au 7

YA R R A R A N G E S

1300 368 333

Printed on Impact 100% recycled, carbon neutral paper. Printed using vegetable based inks and carbon neutral process. ISO9001:2008 YƵĂůŝƚLJ DĂŶĂŐĞŵĞŶƚ ^LJƐƚĞŵƐ ĞƌƟĮĞĚ͘