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Councils talk the ‘real issues’ at parliamentary inquiry

By Shannon Colee

Aug 27, 2023

On the agenda: The crowd at the flood inquiry hearing in Echuca on Thursday. Photos: Aidan Briggs Photo by Aidan Briggs

Funding issues, out-of-date information and the use of local knowledge were top of mind for the Murray River Group of Councils as it faced the parliamentary flood inquiry in Echuca on Thursday.

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Gannawarra Shire Council Mayor Charlie Gillingham talked about the process to fix the local roads.

“Post-flood we’ve got 308 roads identified in the bundle of 13 packages. We’ve done 10 roads in 10 months, 10 roads out of 308,” Cr Gillingham said.

“Back in 2011 we completed all our work, about $25 million worth, in about 15 months. So there’s a lot of difference there. So funding is very important.”

The effects of funding hold-ups was something echoed by Gannawarra Shire chief executive officer Geoff Rollinson.

”We've had our lowest ever score on our roads from that community satisfaction survey and they're correct,” Mr Rollinson said.

“More than 10 per cent of our roads are damaged and we can't clearly tell them when they're going to be fixed.

“That is an issue, that is a real issue.”

Presenters: Gannawarra Shire Council Mayor Charlie Gillingham and chief executive officer Geoff Rollinson. Photo by Aidan Briggs

Campaspe Shire Mayor Rob Amos told the inquiry the Victorian Government mobile apps were still presenting out-of-date information, not allowing them to prepare adequately.

“Residents have reported to councils that they felt uninformed on the progress of the floodwaters and what they should do to prepare and protect themselves and their property,” he said.

“Some residents reported that floodwaters surrounded their properties without any or little warning being received.

“They were underprepared and isolated, in some cases with animals, for prolonged periods of time.”

Committee member and State Member for Northern Victoria Wendy Lovell said she faced similar issues.

“I have to say personally I found the apps useless. We were still getting messages to evacuate four days after the water came,“ she said.

Concerns about how local knowledge was used was also something that was raised with the committee.

Cr Gillingham recognised how it could impact the accuracy of information.

State Member for Northern Victoria Gaelle Broad talks during the floods inquiry hearing last week. Photo by Aidan Briggs

“We’ve got some great local knowledge within our shire council, within our local CFA. People that have lived in the area for a long period of time … so we need to make sure that we use that and that information is reliable and correct so that everyone is fully informed about what’s going on,” he said.