Lismore Mayor Steve Krieg has been a rock for his neighborhood.
However behind the scenes, he's grappling with the identical devastating loss as many individuals in his neighborhood.
Mr Krieg returned to his dwelling and enterprise to find he had misplaced virtually every thing to floodwaters.
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When he first walked into his meals enterprise, he was hit by a robust odor, which was the results of an absence of energy to his coolroom and freezers.
"It is simply heartbreaking," he mentioned.
"Solely 5 years in the past to the month that we have been affected by a significant flood.
"We thought we had completed every thing proper to organize for this one.
"You suppose you are doing the suitable factor.
"Quite a lot of unhealthy issues occur to fairly good individuals."
Mr Krieg mentioned he would have a "good bawl for half an hour or so to take all of it in".
He is among the many who've been decreased to tears as they course of their losses and the highway to restoration that lies forward.
"You have to take in what's occurred, you have to realise what's occurred," he mentioned.
"I am simply one in all many, many 1000's and 1000's of individuals.
"There are hearts damaged like mine throughout this metropolis, however we'll come again, we'll bounce again."
'Fully unimaginable' few days
Olivia Brown "cannot even put into phrases" what the previous couple of days have been like for her and her neighbours within the NSW city of Coraki.
"Monday was actually probably the most traumatic day of all of our lives, saving what we may, forsaking what we knew and simply attending to security," she mentioned.
"Simply attempting to save lots of ourselves, actually.
"However we're alive and that's all that issues."
Ms Brown was up all night time watching the native river.
Her mom is a vet and she or he was away at work.
Because of this, Ms Brown was dwelling alone along with her two youthful siblings and the numerous animals on the property.
"Come Monday morning, our banks broke," Ms Brown mentioned.
"Inside half an hour I used to be as much as waist-deep water attempting to save lots of what animals I may as a result of we do have lots of animals.
"We have been caught for roughly 5 hours, simply ready, attempting to name (for assist). We had no reception to name Triple Zero or SES or anybody actually.
"We simply actually did not suppose we'd survive however fortunately a close-by SES boat noticed us.
"We had 15 adults on the boat and round 10 animals.
"We finally received to Coraki to an evacuation centre on a little bit strip of land that just about went beneath. I used to be there for 3 days."
Clear-up continues
The clean-up is underway in Lismore as floodwaters recede, with the dying toll anticipated to rise as crews search ravaged houses.
4 individuals are confirmed lifeless after the city skilled the worst flooding in its historical past.
There are at present half 1,000,000 individuals throughout the state who're topic to evacuation orders and warnings.
There are 76 evacuation orders in place in NSW, impacting 200,000 individuals.
A further 18 evacuation warnings are additionally in place, affecting practically 300,000 individuals.
The Clarence Valley city of Maclean is urgently making ready to be impacted by floodwaters.
Engineers have indicated there's a likelihood the city's levee wall will fail, inflicting large-scale inundation all through the city.
NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet mentioned many individuals have been waking up as we speak to see "a lot of the state underwater".
"It has been an extremely tough night," he mentioned.
"I need to acknowledge the trauma and struggling that many individuals have gone by way of, all through the night, having to depart their houses in the course of the night time.
"However my message to you is that we'll get by way of this."
The place you will get assist
As flooding continues to hit houses and companies, there are methods you will get assist.
The next are assist companies for flood-affected people:
- Triple Zero (000) for police, fireplace and ambulance in an emergency
- State Emergency Service on 132 500 for flood help
- The Agriculture and Animal Companies Hotline on 1800 814 647 for inventory or animal welfare points
- Purple Cross on 1800 733 276 to attach with the service to register, discover and reunite individuals after an emergency
- Companies Australia on 180 22 66 to seek out out if you're eligible for catastrophe restoration funds
- Resilience NSW on 13 77 88 to seek out out when you're eligible for a catastrophe aid grant in New South Wales
- Group Restoration Hotline on 1800 173 349 for data and assist in Queensland
- Lifeline on 13 11 14 for psychological well being assist