Victorian Indigenous communities leaning on one another during severe floods

An Aboriginal community education centre in Shepparton is working overtime to set up a culturally safe evacuation facility and schedule food and supply drop offs to those who remain stranded.

Mooroopna local and Yorta Yorta man Neil Morris has stayed at home during the floods and fears the damage that his community will face after the waters withdraw. Credit: DRMNGNOW

Despite flood warnings to leave his home, Neil Morris decided to stay on his Country.

He knows some people might think his choice wasn’t safe, but he felt he had a responsibility to his community.

“It was kind of instinctual . . . I had an inner feeling that I would be okay regardless of what would come,” he said.

"I felt a sense of this because the waterway that is impacting the area is a great waterway for our people. Kaielais it's called or, the Goulburn River in colonial languages.

The Yorta Yorta man is a Mooroopna local — born and raised on his ancestral Country.

Screenshot of video footage taken by Neil Morris in Mooroopna as floodwaters inundate properties and businesses. Credit: DRMNGNOW

Floodwaters have surrounded the town, peaking on Monday. Now, hope is on the horizon as they’re beginning to recede.

Mr Morris worries about the damage.

People's homes have been completely flooded out in low-lying spots, even just on my street. There are going to be houses where they would have lost everything,

“I think we can expect in the next few days once people assess some of these damages, there will be a number of calls for support.”

Much of the town was cut off by flood waters, with no access in or out and services inundated.

“On the Mooroopna side of the river, we don't have a hospital or various other services in this part of town. The only supermarket here in town has been flooded out of operation, and the chemist," he said.

Photo of flooding in Mooroopna, taken by Neil Morris Credit: DRMNGNOW

Mr Morris said he is worried that if things get worse, the community will be left to fend for itself.

“As we know in so many of these predicaments, the support services of government generally are not adequate enough to make sure everyone was taken care of."

The floods have overtaken the markers from the 1993 flood, an event Mr Morris remembers.

“I've been around long enough to have memories of the 1993 flood. I can say, without a doubt, that this is a much worse scenario,” he said.

Across the river

Yorta Yorta woman Leonie Dwyer lives in Shepparton, on the other side of the Goulburn river.

She’s the manager of the Academy of Sport, Health and Education (ASHE), a service for young Aboriginal people, which is based in Nixon Street.

With so many staff, students and families displaced, Ms Dwyer opened the ASHE office and their residential facility as a refuge.

Yorta Yorta woman and manager of ASHE, Leonie Dwyer said the team is going above and beyond to make sure their community is safe in the flooding. Credit: Supplied

Both buildings are flood safe and have bathrooms, kitchenettes and other supplies available.

Currently, there are 25 people residing in the properties.

Ms Dwyer said many members of the community didn’t want to leave their homes, and those that did, didn’t want to go to mainstream refuge centres.

“A lot of them didn't want to go to the evacuation centre. That's why they opted and contacted me to say we know ASHE is culturally safe for our mob. They can get comfortable there, it's familiar,” she said.

This isn’t the first time ASHE has stepped up for her community, but unlike COVID, the team hasn’t been able to get to those in need, because of the floodwaters.

“We're just doing what we can from our like ASHE budget, which isn't much, and our own finances. But we also feel helpless because we want to get things to people that we just can't,” she said.

“We've been video messaging students and their families, texting every day. We have group chats for the staff and a group chat for students. And just trying to communicate and keep everyone's spirits up.”

Children playing at Shepparton's ASHE evacuation area.

While waters are receding in Shepparton, Ms Dwyer said there’s talk that the town may be getting another downpour.

"Everyone's emotionally drained and really a bit traumatised in the sense they don't know what's next. Yeah, because we're supposed to get a fair bit of rain tomorrow or Friday,” she said.

People are worried the flood waters will come back up, and that it might be another week until they can get out.

"Everyone is focusing on a clean-up, but there's been no strategy put in place by anybody at this point. We’re still waiting," she said.

"But time will tell over the next few days and I just hope we praying that the water keeps fading and the rain isn't as bad as what they're predicting."

With the future unknown, Ms Dwyer remains staunch – saying whatever happens mob will be ok.

"We're a strong Aboriginal community here in the valley and we'll stick together. We're resilient. We know that,” she said.

“I think that this is just another something that's in our way, but we will get through it."

Leonie Dwyer with a community member at ASHE's community member evacuation area.