Cyclone Debbie Recovery

Cyclone Debbie made landfall near Airlie Beach, Queensland in March 2017 as a severe Category 4 system, before tracking south and causing widespread flooding across South East Queensland and northern NSW. Wind damage, flooding, and storm surge affected thousands of properties from the Whitsundays to the Northern Rivers region.

Events of this scale test every aspect of a disaster recovery operation — contractor availability, equipment logistics, insurer coordination, and project management across multiple sites simultaneously.

Our contractor network deployed across three regions simultaneously: Airlie Beach and the Whitsundays (wind damage), Mackay and Rockhampton (flooding), and the Gold Coast to Lismore corridor (flooding). Emergency teams provided roof tarping, water extraction, structural stabilisation, and contents salvage. Remote area deployments required self-sufficient teams with portable equipment.

Throughout the response, our project management team maintained communication with affected property owners, insurers, and local authorities to ensure coordinated and efficient restoration across all sites.

Restoration was completed across all affected regions within 8 months. Emergency tarping prevented secondary water damage to hundreds of wind-damaged properties in the Whitsundays. Flood-affected properties in the Gold Coast hinterland received priority response due to access difficulties that delayed other contractors.

Cyclone Debbie highlighted the challenge of multi-region events requiring simultaneous deployment across thousands of kilometres. Self-sufficient mobile teams with portable equipment proved essential for remote locations. The event also demonstrated the value of storm-season preparedness, including pre-positioned tarping materials and dewatering equipment.

These learnings have been incorporated into our standard operating procedures and contractor training programs, improving our preparedness and response capability for future events.

If your property has been affected by a disaster event, our team is ready to help 24/7. We respond to emergencies within 60 minutes, work with all major Australian insurers, and direct-bill for covered events — meaning no upfront costs for you.

Whether it is a single property or a large-scale event, our nationwide contractor network has the capacity, equipment, and expertise to restore your property to pre-loss condition.