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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1)
2022-11-17 Daily Xml
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Sandbags

Mr WHETSTONE (Chaffey) (14:31): My question is to the Minister for Emergency Services. Can the minister clarify whether any sandbags are available to Riverland communities and, if so, exactly how many are available today? Why are only 20 sandbags per household available? With your leave, sir, I will explain.

Leave granted.

Mr WHETSTONE: This morning, the Premier claimed on radio when asked, 'What sandbags are currently available?' that there is 'a residual component that are on site in the Riverland, then there's an additional 6,000 in storage'.

The Hon. J.K. SZAKACS (Cheltenham—Minister for Police, Emergency Services and Correctional Services) (14:32): I thank the member for his question. I won't seek to correct his quoting of the Premier, but he will, I'm sure, revise that on reflection in Hansard. As I did yesterday, as I have privately with the member for Chaffey and as I reiterated this morning in response to what I think is some quite outrageous political grandstanding from the member for Chaffey around this suggestion—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: Point of order.

The SPEAKER: Minister, there is a point of order from the member for Morialta.

Mr Tarzia: Advocacy.

The SPEAKER: The member for Hartley is on three warnings.

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: The minister is in breach of standing order 98.

Mr Whetstone: Look after your own community.

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for Chaffey is called to order. Minister, the point of order that has been raised is standing order 98. I draw your attention to standing order 98 and ask you to respond to the substance of the question.

The Hon. J.K. SZAKACS: I will speak further to what I thought and, despite my previous remarks, I remain—as the Premier has indicated and as the Deputy Premier has indicated and as other members in the place have committed to—available to the member for Chaffey. But I reiterate the conversation I had with him yesterday to give him my assurance post question time that there was absolutely no basis of fact in which he imputed that there was a shortage or no sandbags in either the Riverland or in this state. The member's question goes directly to two points: one is what are the holdings in South Australia? I'm pleased to put on—

Mr Whetstone interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order, member for Chaffey!

The Hon. J.K. SZAKACS: —the record once again now those numbers so that we would hope he would take the reasonable position to correct or to at least curtail his position that he has taken incorrectly that there are no sandbags.

The second part of his question was around the number of permanent installations across the five locations in the Riverland being undertaken by the SES, who will be distributing them, the mechanisms by which they will be distributing them and the numbers. I might touch on the latter part of that first and then I will go to the facts at hand that will hopefully, once and for all, put the member's mind at ease.

The 20 or so that have been indicated by the SES for a number of weeks now have been the operational advice that the SES has been putting not only to government but the community of South Australia. When it comes to taking advice about the way that sandbags are best used and the way that sandbags can best protect those properties that can be protected, I will take advice from the SES. The advice that the SES has put to government, and has put to me and reiterated just a moment ago from the Chief Officer of the State Emergency Service, was that an average home that can utilise the defence of sandbagging can utilise between about one dozen and two dozen sandbags.

The method by which the SES will be distributing these sandbags is now far more labour intensive, and that is that the SES are undertaking a more hands-on approach with moving sandbags through our community. They are utilising that opportunity in a preparedness role to start the conversations, continue the conversations, with members of the community about what are their plans to leave.

When the power goes off because it has been disconnected due to safety, what is the plan that that individual will have to leave? When the road of access to their property or potentially the river itself or the Waikerie ferry, for example—when that shuts or when that is impeded—what is their plan to leave and what is their plan to ensure that their lives are prioritised as well as their properties?

I do note that it is towards the end of my time, but with indulgence I will continue because this is an important matter for which I do ask the support of the member for Chaffey and all those opposite to take a reasonable and responsible dialogue with our community. As for the numbers of sandbags which the member alleges do not exist in stores or in availability, I can confirm that as we speak right now sitting in those locations that are immediately deliverable to the members of the Riverland community are over 70,000 sandbags, held by the SES in South Australia, and a further 190,000 sandbags.

Arriving next week, because we haven't sat idly by—and I do note the scurrilous conversations yesterday about how dare we go out and procure directly from manufacturers in India. This government has gone out and next week there will be a further 200,000 sandbags arriving in Adelaide—a further 200,000 sandbags. The week after that, within the next seven to 10 days after that, a further 174,000 sandbags will be arriving in Adelaide.

Due to the time constraints, can I just say that, in total, because this government has been taking action, because we haven't been wanting to see the public discussions and narrative around this hijacked by cheap political opportunism—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. J.K. SZAKACS: —1.5 million sandbags have been locked in to supply and secure and support our communities.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! Minister, there is a supplementary question from the member for Chaffey.

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