Since the flood hit on February 28, Ibrahim Hassan has been living in a van in front of his South Lismore business, hardly leaving the property and working 18 hours a day to rebuild.
But the building he rents at the old Hurfords site is huge at 1000m2, so getting Lismore Appliances back up and running has been a difficult task.
Ibrahim said flood water rose into the second floor of the building, destroying his business.
"Everything was a mess, a couple of storeys high, everything was a mess. Twenty-five years of work has just gone overnight," he said.
The arrival today of a team from Disaster Relief Australia has made the task of cleaning up and rebuilding a little easier.
Disaster Relief Australia launched flood recovery Operation Riordan on August 13 to help Northern Rivers residents recover from catastrophic flooding, and Ibrahim said it was a relief to see them.
"It has been really hard," Ibrahim said of the cleanup.
"It's the first big help I've had. Before I had the Army, they took all the bigger stuff out and threw it away. But it's been very hard."
Ibrahim had been doing it all on his own since then, so the arrival of the DRA team was welcome, "everything is helpful."
DRA unites the skills and experiences of military veterans with first responders and civilians to rapidly deploy emergency response teams in Australia and around the world.
More than 1000 people are still without a home and staying in temporary housing, and only about 20 per cent of businesses have reopened, so there is a lot of work still to be done.
Mission commander of Operation Riordan, Nick Backe-Hansen said the group was working with Resilient Lismore to identify people who are in real need.
Nick said while they often helped homeowners, helping out a business like Lismore Appliances offered the opportunity to help not only Ibrahim, but many others as well.
"In this situation, the business owner used to have 16 employees, now he has four. If we help one business, the flow on effect is employment, getting stability and their life back in order. Helping one helps many, and I like that," he said.
Nick said they were working with Ibrahim to identify how to tackle the task of cleaning up and rebuilding his huge store.
"As an individual, I personally can't imagine what that would be like, particularly with employment, and he's living in some pretty extreme conditions at the moment."
He said helping with disaster recovery was rewarding for the workers, making use of the skills and life experience gained during careers in defence or as first responders.
Many were looking for what to do next once they had retired or could no longer be deployed and DRA gave them a purpose in life.
Nick said they often found if they helped "someone else who's going through arguably the worst period of their life, if their own personal journey is a bit shakey, it makes them feel better."
For Disaster Relief Australia CEO Geoff Evans, it's personal.
"Lismore is my hometown and many of my family and friends who still live there were impacted by the recent floods. I experienced many floods in my youth, but nothing so severe as the floods that occurred in February and March of this year," Geoff said.
"Lismore is a resilient community. People are already picking up the pieces and putting their lives back together. For many though, they have been unable to take that important first step in their long journey to recovery. I am proud to be launching Operation Riordan, named for NSW-born army nurse Ellen Agnes Meline Riordan.
"Disaster Relief Australia will be working with local community disaster recovery organisation, Resilient Lismore, to ensure the recovery efforts are integrated with local knowledge and systems."
Director of Resilient Lismore, Elly Bird was pleased to be working with DRA on their return to the Northern Rivers.
"There is still so, so much work to do in Lismore and in surrounding communities and we know that their expertise in disaster relief will be a big assistance in our community,' Elly said.
"We will be working with DRA to close out some of the big jobs that we haven't been able to manage with our own volunteers and we will also be inviting some of their teams to help us with our two rooms project which is focused on restoring safe, secure and warm housing for people who need it."
Wayne O'Brien joined DRA in 2021 as bushfires raged through his local Perth Hills. Now manager of the Western Australian Disaster Relief Team, Wayne is finding himself on the other side of the country leading the operation as Theatre Commander.
"With assistance from community-run organisation Resilient Lismore, we will assist locals and businesses in getting back on their feet. We hope to make a big impact and bring real help to the region. We're always looking for motivated volunteers to bolster our numbers and are urging Australians everywhere to work alongside DRA members experienced in disaster recovery work. You can sign up on our website in minutes and our mobilisation team can get you on the ground with us in days."
A base of operations will be located at the Southern Cross Football Centre in East Lismore and will run from August 13 to 11 September 11, 2022. Funding permitting, the operation could continue until September 26.
People can register for help, and to help, including corporate teams, sporting teams, and spontaneous volunteers.
How to register for assistance: https://floodhelpnr.com.au
How to volunteer: https://disasterreliefaus.org/field-ops/operation-riordan/ How to donate: https://disasterreliefaus.org/donate-to-flood-relief/
About Disaster Relief Australia
Disaster Relief Australia unites the skills and experiences of military veterans with first responders to rapidly deploy emergency response teams in Australia and around the world. Disaster Relief Australia is a not-for-profit organisation offering veterans a chance to continue their service by helping and empowering those afflicted by disasters, and also themselves. Programs and services are made possible by the support of individual donors, corporate partners, and the dedication of volunteers across the country. To join or support visit www.disasterreliefaus.org.
