“When will our community heroes get the recognition they deserve?”
MP Andrew Gee has asked for those who served in the Eugowra and central west floods of 2022 to be eligible for the National Emergency Medal – as thsoe emergency responders, volunteers and community workers in the floods of northern NSW and Queensland earlier that year are.
He’s taken the call to Federal Parliament, putting it on the agenda for Prime Minister Anthony Albanese in Question Time.
“The 2022 central west NSW floods saw extraordinary acts of courage and service across our communities,” Mr Gee told Parliament.
“Eugowra was the scene of the biggest helicopter rescue in Australia’s history.
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“Despite this the National Emergency Medal is still not available to emergency responders, volunteers and community workers who performed with such distinction in that crisis.”
The independent National Emergency Medal committee had requested additional expert information on the timeline of events, the impact on individual areas and localities, Mr Albanese responded after taking the question on notice.
“Under the National Emergency Medal regulations 2011 the responsible minister must not make a recommendation to the Governor General to declare an event as a nationally significant emergency unless the minister has received advice from the National Emergency Medal Committee,” he said.
In this case the responsible minister is the Minister Assisting the Prime Minister, he added.
Mr Albanese visited Eugowra twice in the aftermath of the flood event that tragically claimed the lives of two local people.
He told Parliament it was “quite extraordinary” to see the destructive power of the flood waters.
“In addition to that the impact, the human impact, was devastating on that community,” Mr Albanese said.
“It was terrific to go with the member (for Calare) and to see first hand the resilience of those communities and to be able to thank emergency service workers and others.”
More than 530 National Emergency Medals have been awarded to individuals who served in other 2022 flood events, Mr Albanese said.
The committee will next meet in November this year to consider further events for declaration.
“I commit to the member for Calare that I will inform him at the first available opportunity as to their deliberations,” Mr Albanese said.
