Phil Donato calls on government to ramp up water security measurers to improve flood mitigation

Six months has passed since Eugowra was devastated by a freak flood that swept through the town around breakfast time on November 14.

Homes were smashed and at times completely removed from foundations. People clung to rooftops, branches of trees, cars, just about anything. And two people - Ljubisa 'Les' Vugec, 85, and Dianne Smith, 60 - died after being washed away by the inland tsunami.

It's one of the worst disasters to hit the Cabonne Shire.

And six months on many are still feeling the pinch.

Insurance claims have been tough to process. Sourcing builders, or even materials, to start rebuilds has proven a real nightmare. Many who call the village home are either living in a caravan or a pod home. And those remaining in Eugowra are weighing up whether staying put was the best choice.

Is enough being done?

"Not really," Mr Donato bluntly said.

"One of things I've been calling on government to look at is raising Wyangala Dam. It wouldn't have made a difference in Eugowra, but certainly Forbes and the Lachlan Valley it would have. It looks as though governments, at both levels, are not interested though.

"Water security, it's being put in the all-too-hard basket. There's too much red and green tape, and no one is prepared to take it on.

"It's going to cost a lot of money, but you've got to think long term and think for the future."

The future remains a little foggy for those still battling away in Eugowra, though.

In the wake of the flood, then NSW Premier Dom Perrottet visited the region on multiple occasions while Prime Minister Anthony Albanese also flew in to assess the damage first hand.

Since November, though, other than Mr Donato and Federal Member for Calare Andrew Gee, the signs of support have been few and far between.

"The town quite rightly feels forgotten in the aftermath," Mr Donato said.

"It prompted me to make that speech in parliament last week. It's still a big issue."

In 2019, the NSW government committed to raising the Wyangala Dam wall near at Cowra by 10 metres, which would increase its storage capacity by more than 50 per cent.

Recent reports on the mooted upgrade suggest the cost could be over $2 billion.

Mr Donato said, however, the cost of doing nothing is almost just as steep.

Estimates across his desk suggest each time the valley floods it costs tax payers "a couple of hundred million dollars in lost productivity".

The Central Western Daily has reached out to new Labor Minister for Regional and Western NSW Tara Moriarty to look at what support is being put in place for the people of Eugowra. While Penny Sharpe, the minister for Climate Change, has also been contacted to gauge what measures are being considered in a bid to safe guard the Central West from similar disasters triggered by climate extremes; flood, bush fire and plague. At time of publication, both are yet to comment.

Mr Donato revealed he was working with Premier Chris Minns and Minister for Emergency Services Jihad Dib to bring both out to the village to meet with residents. The Central Western Daily has also reached out to both parties to confirm their looming visits.

The Orange MP says we, as a region, can only wait for so long.

"We have to be bold and brave and look at new water infrastructure projects. Raise walls, build new dams. We haven't built new dams for decades," Mr Donato said.

He added the implementation of early warning systems and sophisticated metering and gauging on river and creek levels - advanced technology that was non-existent for the people of Eugowra and Molong in November, 2022 - was necessary to ensure these communities had some warning ahead of future flood events.

"The only really fortunate thing for Eugowra is the flood was at 8.30am and not 4.30am. Had it been in the middle of the night we would have potentially lost hundreds of people," Mr Donato said.

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