By Mikayla van Loon
In the wake of the tornado-like storms that battered the coast of Queensland over Christmas, two local volunteers helped ease the burden as the clean up effort got underway.
Rapid Relief Team (RRT) volunteers Tom Garrett, from Boronia, and Daniel Trim, from Lilydale, were part of the 55 strong member response to help Gold Coast residents get back on their feet.
Heading up to the north eastern state on Wednesday 3 January, Tom and Daniel were part of the interstate crew who relieved local volunteers during the second week of clean up.
“We were tasked with priority one duties in the worst hit areas to clear roads that had been blocked by fallen trees and enable the powerline people to get in and restore electricity,” they said.
Being on the ground, both Tom and Daniel said witnessing the destruction was a whole lot worse than they’d imagined.
“It struck me that it was similar to the devastation after Black Saturday, the tops of trees were stripped,” Tom said.
“The photos and videos just don’t do it justice, it was so much worse. The damage was very severe,” Daniel said.
Buildings experienced extensive damage, sheds were flown into other people’s backyards and numerous animals were killed.
The RRT crews helped clear 3000 cubic metres of debris, the equivalent of 500 truck loads, over five days.
In conversation one day with a tree contractor who had been employed to cut down dislodged trees, Daniel said they were amazed by the response of RRT’s volunteers.
“He said ‘we’re getting paid to do this and you’re all volunteers’. He was shocked.
“He said to me ‘you guys are amazing, you’re doing way more than us.”
RRT director Lester Sharples said the support of local businesses in supplying excavators and bobcats was crucial in clearing the significant amount of debris.
“If it weren’t for the heavy machinery, which was graciously provided to us at minimal cost, the enormous task of the immediate clean-up from these storms would have been far greater and taken far longer,” he said.
“Every tree and branch we clear is a small step on the road to recovery. While there’s a long way to go for communities across the Gold Coast, we’ve made significant inroads in the clean-up which will help people get on with the job of repairing and rebuilding their homes and businesses.”
In between the physical labour of removing fallen trees and debris, RRT volunteers provided 800 meals to fellow volunteers and emergency personnel from the Australian Defence Force, RFS and Disaster Relief Australia.
“It’s good how everyone works together and it’s interesting how you get along with people you’ve never met before because of this common interest to help, you become knitted together,” Daniel said.
Stationed in the vicinity of the Gold Coast Motor Museum, Tom said what will stick with him is the generosity of those who had been so affected by the storms.
“The impact of how one man opened his property to us to store our machinery even though his house and business had been destroyed in the storm will stay with me,” he said.
For Daniel, he said the visual of the before and after of the carnage this storm left in its path will remain with him.
Not only that, it will be the people who were so grateful for the help, that they would yell and cheer as they drove past in cars or walked the streets that will stay a solid memory in Daniel’s mind.
While Tom has volunteered with RRT for 10 years, and even prior to that providing catering during events like Black Saturday, Daniel was new to the response.
“I liked the ability to lend a hand really quickly and machinery being my line of work, I felt like I could put my skills to use,” Daniel said.
“It was more than you could ever expect in terms of reward.”
Seeing the appreciation of communities and feeling the reward of helping others, Daniel and Tom said volunteering with RRT will continue to be a big part of their lives.
