Ever increasing record high flood levels are marked on the side of Lismore’s flood levee. 

Lismore, a town in Northern New South Wales is dissected by two major rivers. When there’s heavy rainfall, water flows down from the surrounding hills, slowing at the bottom and spreading across the floodplain. 

The town’s residents know floods, their houses are built high, some four metres off the ground in the canopies of trees. Many have flood plans, keeping kayaks and dinghies tethered to their homes in case of emergency.

On February 27 2022, water inundated the town, sweeping away cars, stranding residents on rooftops and filling houses with inches of mud.

In the weeks that followed volunteer hubs sprang up to feed and clothe locals forced to shelter in tents and cars as they struggle to recover with minimal support and start to clean out and rebuild their homes in the trees.  

Guests: 

Vicki Findlay

Naomi Moran

Aidan Ricketts

Lucy Wise

Freya Woodland

Production team

Producer and sound design: Sarah Mashman

Engineer: Tegan Nichols

Theme composer: Oliver Beard

Additional music by Blue Dot Sessions

Management team: Abe Killian and Sime Knezevic

Made with the co-operation of 2NCR, Lismore and the Koori Mail

Roofs above water was made on Widjabul Wia-bal Country of the Bundjalung Nation and the lands of the muwinina people from Country around nipaluna. These lands were never ceded.

From the Embers Season 2: Phoenix is supported by The Judith Neilson Institute for Journalism and Ideas, The Paul Ramsay Foundation, Monash University’s Fire to Flourish program and The Minderoo Foundation Fire and Flood Resilience Initiative and broadcast across Australia via the Community Radio Network