Kealy: I’ll continue to fight
Member for Lowan Emma Kealy is angry the State Government has rejected a request from West Wimmera Shire Council to declare recent fires at Poolaijelo and Langkoop a disaster.
The fire on New Year’s Eve killed thousands of sheep and cattle and destroyed dozens of farm outbuildings, hundreds of kilometres of fencing, plus pastures and vehicles.
Ms Kealy raised the matter in State Parliament, concerned residents impacted by the bushfires were unable to unlock State Government support through Bushfire Recovery Victoria.
Bushfire Recovery Victoria is a new arm of the State Government specifically established to streamline and provide bushfire support to affected families, businesses and councils.
Ms Kealy said Emergency Services Minister Lisa Neville’s response, saying declarations needed to have happened during an emergency and not in a recovery stage, was unacceptable.
She said the minister’s response was a complete ‘cop-out’ given the request for disaster declaration came through on the second day of the fires, and ‘the minister declined to act’.
“This is a catastrophic event for this region, with so much pasture, hundreds of kilometres of fence lines, extensive farm infrastructure and
thousands of head of stock destroyed by fire,” Ms Kealy said.
“The minister now says it’s too late as the communities are in the recovery stage, but her failure to respond in a timely manner over her holidays doesn’t override the fact the request was made by officials on the fireground just two days after the fire broke out.
“While everyone is doing an amazing job in providing support to the families affected by the fire, support services are extremely limited in the region, with many already overwhelmed with increasing numbers of COVID cases in the area.
“The additional State Government support that is provided through Bushfire Recovery Victoria would be so important over the coming months for families in the Poolaijelo and Langkoop communities to help them recover and rebuild.
“The minister’s response is totally unacceptable and insulting.
“I’ll continue to pursue the bushfire support for this isolated region that they need and deserve.”