When Ann Walters rang triple 0 to report rising water in her Hooke Street home on the morning of April 21 she was told by the operator to stand on the table.
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“I told her I couldn’t, it was already floating in the water,” she said.
Almost six months after the superstorm which dumped an unprecedented amount of rain over the Dungog Shire, the couple are very close to moving back into their home.
And while they had “excellent” service from their insurer NRMA, they have also received financial help from the Lions Club of Dungog to refurbish their home.
Ann and her husband Neil were able to go to Harvey Norman and purchase furniture for their home which has now been fixed.
The Lions Club has been liaising with the Dungog Shire Community Centre to financially help victims of the natural disaster which saw numerous homes flooded and property damaged or washed away.
Treasurer Kim Wright said they have already assisted 34 individuals and families since the devastation.
Through the Lions Follow Your Dream Foundation, the club provided 15 laptop computers to young students who lost everything in the floods.
“Some of these students were sitting the HSC this year and really needed to have a computer urgently,” Mr Wright said.
“So far we have spent $40,000 locally and there are still more people to be helped.
“We are taking our instructions from the community centre on who needs to be helped and with people starting to move back into their homes, more people are coming forward for assistance.
“I know it will be quite a while, even well into next year, before the residents of Alison Court are able to move back into but they will need washing machines and fridges so we will make sure we have funds there to help.”
Ann and Neil are very grateful for the assistance shown to them by the Lions Club and are looking forward to moving back into their home.
They were rescued from their home by Shane Darr and Grahame Berry as the water reached 1.6 metres inside the house.
“I can’t really swim so if it wasn’t for them I think we would have drowned,” Ann said.
“We stayed with our son Craig and his kids and of all the flood victims I think we are the luckiest as we were able to go straight into a home.
“We are very, very fortunate.”