Leader of The Nationals WA Shane Love MLA has accused the Minister for Emergency Services of washing his hands of responsibility and leaving the Shire of East Pilbara stranded with a $60 million repair bill from Cyclone Zelia.
In Parliament this week, Mr Love revealed the Shire had repeatedly called for an urgent roundtable with key stakeholders – including the Department of Fire and Emergency Services (DFES), Main Roads, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and the State Government – to resolve the funding deadlock, only to be ignored.
“Cyclone Zelia tore through the East Pilbara in February, leaving behind more than $60 million in damage to vital road networks across some of the most remote communities in Western Australia,” Mr Love said.
“Six months on, too many of those roads remain closed or barely passable, cutting off Aboriginal communities, disrupting supply chains, and leaving the region dangerously exposed to the next severe weather event.
“When pressed in Question Time, the Minister dismissed the issue out of hand, shrugging his shoulders and saying ‘probably not’ when asked if he would help the Shire coordinate a roundtable. That’s not leadership, it’s negligence,” Mr Love said.
Shadow Minister for Emergency Services, Rob Horstman MLC, said the Minister’s response showed a fundamental failure to understand his responsibilities.
“The Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements (DRFA) exist precisely to deal disasters like Cyclone Zelia,” Mr Horstman said. “They are not optional. They are a joint responsibility between State and Federal Government’s to make sure money flows quickly to impacted communities.
“The Minister’s refusal to meet with the Shire is inexcusable. You can guarantee if $60 million of road damage had occurred in Perth suburbs, there would be a taskforce established in days and repairs underway immediately. Those living in remote and regional areas of WA deserve no less,” Mr Horstman said.
Shadow Minister for Local Government, Kirrilee Warr MLA, said the Shire of East Pilbara’s experience highlighted systemic failures in the disaster recovery system.
“Almost five years on from Cyclone Seroja, one of WA’s worst ever natural disasters, local governments across WA are still telling us that the DRFA process is broken,” Ms Warr said.
“It is slow, bureaucratic, and allows too much buck-passing.”
“Civil construction in remote areas is also very expensive, and local governments simply do not have the cash flow to progress repairs without access to DRFA funding.
“The Minister can’t keep shrugging his shoulders and pointing his fingers. He must front up, sit down with the Shire of East Pilbara, and fight to get this funding moving so roads can be rebuilt and communities reconnected,” Ms Warr said
