Almost 100 Rutherglen flood victims still waiting for answers two months on from major storm activity

Almost 100 Rutherglen residents have been left without a permanent home for two months after a major flood event swept through the town on January 29.

Parts of the town were hit with between 150 and 200 millimetres of rain in 90 minutes, with houses on Murray Street and the eastern end of Main Street among the hardest hit as Lake King overflowed and water came rushing downhill.

The stark reality is Rutherglen and nearby Chiltern residents, most of whom lost everything to the sheer volume of water, are none the wiser to what happens next.

Only two items could be salvaged from Nicole Anstee's Main Street home, where she lived with her mother, Kerry, and son, Alex - a children's bed frame and a crockery cabinet.

Nicole said the family moved "six or seven times" between motels, caravan parks and bed and breakfasts before they were able to secure a rental property through the agent they purchased their home from.

"Rutherglen and surrounds have around a 90 per cent occupancy rate, so it's really difficult to find accommodation," she said.

"I kept saying to the insurance company, if you're going to find longer term accommodation for us, it needs to be done in advance.

"It's a high tourist area, so there's no accommodation. We were lucky with this.

"We went from caravan parks to motels, bed and breakfasts. It was absolutely horrendous.

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"My son is more than likely autistic, we're about to get him assessed, so it was difficult for us and it was very difficult for him.

"At least we have a roof and something to sit on and sleep in, but we only have this house for six months.

"Even that's difficult because you wonder what happens after that. We don't know how long the insurers will continue to pay the rent for us."

Extreme flood activities in northern New South Wales and South East Queensland have created a huge backlog of insurance claims, adding more stress to the situation.

"We've had an insurance inspector out who said we need a structural engineer to look at the house, but that still hasn't been done," Nicole said.

"We got a form back saying we had a list of 113 things insured, but I had more than that in my kitchen, let alone our whole house.

"I've had two phone calls from the council. The first was to do a survey and they wanted to know the ins and outs of everything about three days later and the second one was to tell me they're not to blame.

"I don't care about blame, how about ringing people to ask what they actually need and what they can do to help."

Indigo Council director of community and economic development Mark Florence said staff had been in touch with a large number of residents impacted in both Rutherglen and Chiltern.

"We believe the SES visited more than 30 residential properties across Rutherglen and Chiltern, however there may have been others who did not call the SES," Mr Florence said.

Kerry has been back and forth to the house to help with the insurance process, but revealed she had broken out in a staph infection as a result of the residue from the sewer water.

"I spent four hours in the garage the other day taking photographs with the insurance man and I've had a reaction to it," she said.

"The council is telling us to get somebody private to do an inspection on the property, but there is nobody.

"Our neighbours are the same and I've talked to the owner of Motel Woongarra next door and they're still waiting. They put in brand new air conditioning units across the back wall and they were destroyed.

"I had words with the CEO of the council (Trevor Ierino) and I told him if he didn't fix the problem he was going to have to allow me to put a house on stilts on the block."

Steve Milthorpe lives nearby the Anstee family on Murray Street and described the flood as a "tsunami" as it tore apart his house and yard in January.

He said there was $40,000 in damage to contents and a further $33,000 to the house.

Mr Milthorpe has been staying with his parents, while his brother was also affected and has set up a caravan in his backyard.

"I have been trying and trying with the insurers and starting to get a little bit of leeway, but they keep saying it could be a wait," he said.

Rutherglen Lions Club president elect Herb Ellerbock described Indigo Council's disaster response as "abysmal" and feared what it could have looked like if the town's service clubs, Lions, Rotary and Apex, hadn't stepped in to offer support.

Mr Ellerbock has teamed up with Caffeine n Machine cafe owner Nick Hawtin to organise a car, bike and truck show, Rutherglen Rumble, at the town's showgrounds on Easter Sunday to raise funds for victims of the flood.

"This flood has been the best kept secret," he said.

"It may be on a smaller scale to what has happened up north, but the effects on individuals is exactly the same. It's only the water levels that were different.

"We reached out to the victims on the very first day and the shire wasn't around."

Rutherglen Lions welfare officer Julie Simpson has compiled a spreadsheet of 91 Rutherglen residents who were forced out of their homes by the floods.

"I've been doing welfare work for years, but it still gets to you. The lack of care and compassion for people is just mind-blowing," she said.

"We've been collecting furniture items and we've had offers from op shops all over the place to hand out clothing and whatever they need, but people are not in a position to take it at the moment.

"Some people blaming the shire, but a lot of people aren't and just want to be acknowledged and know somebody cares for them."

Chiltern's Golden Ball Cafe owners, Enza and John Rumble, live behind their Conness Street eatery, which took the brunt of flooding in the town centre.

They said council had taken a "genuine interest" in the flooding, but haven't been reassured there's a plan to stop it happening again.

Mr and Mrs Rumble were told unless funding was found, required culvert works wouldn't be carried out until they are included in the next financial budget.

"We will not be happy if we get flooded again," they said.

"I thought the government had flood relief? Where is this money? Shouldn't our issue be part of that flood relief and not next year's budget?"

Indigo Council had a community recovery barbecue at Rutherglen's Apex Park earlier in March, with help from Rutherglen Rotary Club.

"Council is continuing to work with the community and particularly the Lions Club in Rutherglen which has been very active in supporting residents," Mr Florence said.

"Council officers have been connecting individuals to a range of support services including financial aid where available, the Salvation Army and Red Cross supports, legal aid and counselling."

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