However, other areas of the city are inundated, including Maryborough and Warwick. So far about 160,000 people remain without power, and over 1,000 power lines are down. A total of 46 council areas are now able to claim government aid packages, including the Brisbane, Gold Coast, Logan and Redland districts.
Larger businesses have also been hit, with Target forced to close five stores and the Reject Shop shutting down one location – the Reject Shop suffered a huge amount of damage in the 2011 floods. Several other businesses in Bundaberg and the Gold Coast have also been affected by flood damage.
The major telcos have also been struggling to get services back online. Optus was the latest to confirm all its major centres are operational in Queensland.
However, there is some relief. Suncorp has issued a statement saying it doesn’t expect premiums to increase as a result of the weather so far, saying reforms issued by the 2011 floods have generated better coverage.
”Obviously there have been premium increases in the last couple of years but those premiums are now reflecting the actual risk [from severe weather events], which has increased,” a Suncorp spokesperson told Fairfax.
”But the first half of this financial year was relatively benign and we have allowances in place to cover events exactly as we’re seeing right now.”
The Insurance of Council of Australia also said in a statement the industry has already received thousands of claims, saying it’s “highly possible” there will be more wild weather before the end of the season.
The ICA was contacted by SmartCompany this morning, but it did not reply before publication.
Business’ worst fear is a repeat of the 2011 floods. Following the disaster, the tourism industry took a dive and has only just begun to recover. The ICA has estimated losses of almost $4 billion in the past three years due to dangerous weather.
A spokesperson for the Tourism and Transport Forum told SmartCompany this morning businesses need to do all they can to ensure customers know their locations are open for business, warning the perception of disaster can permeate through to non-affected areas.
“Businesses need to get the message out after the emergency has subsided,” he said. “It’s sometimes difficult to counter the images that are on the news.”
Patrick Stafford is a freelance journalist and a former deputy editor of SmartCompany.
