Redland City State Emergency Service (SES) unit volunteers have returned home after helping flood-impacted communities in northern and western Queensland.
Redland City Mayor and Local Disaster Management Group (LDMG) chair Jos Mitchell said 22 members of the unit were deployed in January to assist with the emergency response in Townsville, Mount Isa, Rockhampton, Halifax, Normanton, Cloncurry and several other areas.
The communities had been battered by the 2025-2026 North Queensland monsoon trough and heavy rains from ex-Tropical Cyclone Koji as it moved inland.
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“It was real grass-level work like repairing roofs, sandbagging, door-knocking, delivering food and equipment where necessary,” the Mayor said.
“They also worked in incident management areas and supported the local SES groups on reconditioning and maintenance of their depots.
“We really appreciated the incredible support we received from other councils and SES units during ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred in March last year, so it was great to be able to help out other communities across the state in their time of need.”
Redland SES members who were deployed were: Aberaham Nosa, Alex Richardson, Belinda Brown (two deployments), Cindel Richardson, Darryl Hall, Emma Moneypenny, Fiona Mcleod, Gaye Idec, Heather Robertson, Jenny Ross, Kiara Muraca, Lee Unit, Lisa Nardone, Maria Forster, Mike Jones (two deployments), Paul Idec, Peter Brown, Ross Alcorn (two deployments), Stephen Ball, Tim Wills, Tony Morton, and Wayne Whitrod.
The Mayor said Council staff also assisted Flinders Shire with Council’s Disaster Management Senior Policy and Programs Advisor, Katie Hunter, deployed to Hughenden – approximately 1400 km north-west of Redlands Coast.
“During the 10-day deployment from 11 January 2026, Ms Hunter provided disaster response and recovery support for the shire which had been severely affected by the wet weather event,” the Mayor said.
The deployment was conducted under the Local Government Association of Queensland’s Council to Council (C2C) support program.
The C2C program involves an exchange of officers between councils. It aims to support impacted local governments with additional trained officers that can assist the response and recovery efforts by sharing skills and knowledge, and through hands-on work.
For information on becoming an SES volunteer, visit ses.qld.gov.au.
