Community still mourning
Tensions ease a month on from Debbie Combarngo’s tragic death
POLICE and welfare agencies are continuing close engagement with Debbie Combarngo’s extended family a month after she was killed in Toowoomba.
After tensions flared in the days immediately after her death on May 6 at Wilsonton, police called for calm and drew on resources across several community groups with the view of helping the grieving process.
But as nine people were taken into custody and charged over the death, the impact of the tragedy stretched across Toowoomba, the Darling Downs and western regions.
“At this stage, it is all good,” Toowoomba City Patrol Group Inspector Stephen Angus said.
“We have continued to liaise with the families and provide support to those family groups through external agencies.
“That’s not to say that we don’t need to continue to monitor and offer support to them.”
While tensions have been expected to reignite around Ms Combarngo’s funeral on May 25, Inspector Angus said the Toowoomba and Darling Downs community had been respectful of those impacted by the tragic death.
“Everyone has been well behaved and considerate of the grieving families,” he said.
School-based police officers, including Aboriginal liaison officers, have stepped up the support for impacted students, he said.
“They continue to liaise with a greater number of schools in the Toowoomba area to provide support with school students in relation to the death,” he said.
Other community groups including Lifeline, Youth Justice, Carbal Medical and Goolburri have also maintained close contact with Ms Combarngo’s family, and relatives of the nine people charged over her death.
“There has been a whole range of groups,” Inspector Angus said.
“It’s not just us; it’s a broad spectrum of agencies that continue to support these communities.”