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Legislative Council - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, Second Session (54-2)
2021-02-16 Daily Xml
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Bushfire Recovery Support

The Hon. T.J. STEPHENS (14:57): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before addressing a question to the Minister for Health and Wellbeing on the topic of support to people impacted by bushfires.

Leave granted.

The Hon. T.J. STEPHENS: In recent months, threatening fires in the Lucindale region in the South-East and Cherry Gardens and Clarendon in the Adelaide Hills resulted in the destruction of thousands of hectares of farmland and native vegetation. Family homes were lost and farms and outbuildings were destroyed. Livestock and animals in their natural habitat were also lost. Extensive investment continues to be deployed to rejuvenate the communities and economies of those regions that have been devastated by the destruction caused by these fires and those of early 2020.

Besides the physical loss, there is also the human factor and the impact on the health of inhabitants in those regions and the firefighters on the fire fronts. Can the minister provide an update to the council on the support provided to people affected by bushfires, especially regarding their mental health?

The Hon. S.G. WADE (Minister for Health and Wellbeing) (14:59): I thank the honourable member for his question and I certainly agree with him that we need to support people affected by bushfires in terms of their mental health. The recent fires in the Adelaide Hills would have brought back very dark memories for a lot of people. To be frank, there is not only the people from Yorke Peninsula, the Adelaide Hills and Kangaroo Island in the 2019-20 fires but even people who have suffered bushfires long ago. I can recall a story of a lady who was affected by the Ash Wednesday bushfires—

The Hon. J.M.A. Lensink: The President was a firefighter; sorry.

The Hon. S.G. WADE: The person affected—

The Hon. J.M.A. Lensink: Was a firefighter.

The Hon. S.G. WADE: I am sure even people in this chamber have been affected by bushfires. The point I am trying to make is that recent bushfires can reactivate the grief and the distress that people have experienced in bushfires. Certainly, 2020 will be remembered primarily as the year of the COVID pandemic, but for many people the pandemic has had less impact on them personally than the devastation of the bushfires that ended at the end of 2019 and the beginning of 2020. The Marshall Liberal government recognises the ongoing impact of these fires and continues to support the resilience and mental health and wellbeing of communities affected by bushfires.

As part of this ongoing work, last week the government provided grants to 10 local community organisations to support improved mental health and wellbeing. These grants mark the first round of the Strengthening Community Wellbeing after Bushfire grants, which is part of the government's $2.6 million Bushfire Mental Health Project. Each of these grants support community-led, community-initiated projects to develop resilience in these communities.

It's not possible here to go into each project in detail, but one example of these projects is the project for animal carers run by Summit Health. One of the confronting images coming out of last year's bushfires was the terrible loss of animal life, with thousands of livestock and wildlife dying in the fires. In response to this, Summit Health will run four events for carers of animals across the Adelaide Hills and Kangaroo Island, supporting and celebrating the carers who spent so much time caring for injured animals and, sadly, euthanising those who were not able to survive. The workshops will be facilitated by experienced therapeutic practitioners, ensuring the workshops can address wellbeing in a professional and evidence-based way.

Another of the projects, on the other side of the state on Yorke Peninsula, is being run by St Columba's Memorial School and will support children and their carers through first-aid sessions and mental health information. Each family will receive first-aid training and will be supported to develop both their sense of resilience and their preparedness for these circumstances. Each family will be able to take a first-aid kit home, giving potentially life-saving aid while building their confidence.

These are just two of the 10 projects, and I wish all the communities all the best as they build and maintain their mental health and resilience. This is always important but particularly after some of the troubling experiences these communities have been through. All South Australians feel for those of us impacted by bushfires. Together, we will face each challenge that confronts us. Together, we will overcome them.

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