Nowra, New South Wales

July 2024

In July 2024, Rural Aid volunteers travelled to Nowra on the New South Wales South Coast to support farming families recovering from severe flooding and prolonged wet weather that impacted the Shoalhaven region in recent years. Following intense rainfall events across 2022 and 2023, the Shoalhaven River and surrounding waterways experienced major flooding, inundating farmland, damaging fencing and infrastructure, and leaving many rural properties isolated. For farming families across the region, repeated flood events and saturated conditions created ongoing challenges, affecting livestock management, pasture recovery and day-to-day farm operations long after the immediate disaster had passed. (shoalhaven.nsw.gov.au)

During the Farm Recovery Event, 20 volunteers worked alongside six local farming families to help with the clean-up and rebuilding effort still underway after the floods. Volunteers assisted with practical farm jobs including fencing repairs, clearing debris and restoring damaged areas across affected properties. More than the physical work completed, the event brought encouragement, connection and a reminder to local families that rural communities across Australia continue to stand beside one another through challenging seasons and long recovery journeys.