Scott Morrison denies he acted too slowly to help rescue flood victims

Scott Morrison hit back at claims he took too long to deploy the army to help with floods across two states – even though two offers of military help were rejected.

The prime minister has been widely criticised for taking 10 days to declare a national emergency for catastrophic flooding that killed 22 people, and had residents in Lismore and Mullumbimby, in northern NSW, battling rising tides on their own.

Some residents were forced to sit on their roofs until they were rescued, while others had to rely on friends, family and neighbours to help them get to dry land.

In Queensland, Ipswich residents have also been left to clean up their third major flood in 11 years. 

Mr Morrison on Sunday morning said it could take a long time to deploy military to different parts of the country.

The interview was just hours after it was revealed the NSW State Emergency Serive twice knocked back support offered by the Australian Defence Force on February 25, before waters started to rise. 

The catastrophic floods in Lismore (pictured in late-February) displaced hundreds of residents

Mr Morrison told Weekend Today the idea his cabinet was too slow to respond to emergencies was nothing more than a ‘Labor narrative’. 

‘There is a chorus of commentary that seeks to support that. That is often the same chorus that didn’t like how the last election went,’ he said.

‘I understand the frustration because in a disaster like I have seen up in Lismore, no response is ever going to be able to meet the overwhelming need.’ 

He explained Good Samaritans were essential in natural disasters because ‘the community is always going to be the first ones there’.

‘We need people to go and rescue their neighbours. We we need the community response,’ he said.

‘To deploy nationally positioned forces around the country and mobilise them with the equipment and the heavy equipment and the supplying and the provisioning – that, you can’t just turn that off and on. 

‘You’re never going to have an ADF base sitting around the corner in every single town.’

Prime Minister Scott Morrison (pictured) defended the government’s response to the deadly floods in NSW and Queensland

The PM was asked whether the government had a lack of foresight around natural disasters, in reference to the thousands of homes that were lost in the catastrophic 2019-20 bushfires.

Mr Morrison then pointed out that Australia was quick to move on JobKeeper when thousands of citizens lost their jobs at the beginning of the pandemic, and closed borders with China in an attempt to keep the virus out. 

He made the emergency declaration in response to the floods last Saturday – which means relief funds and other government support could reach flood-affected areas more directly. 

Despite Mr Morrison’s defence, the Daily Telegraph reported on Sunday that the ADF contacted NSW SES headquarters at 2pm on February 25 to ask if assistance was required.

But the Defence representative was told help would not be necessary. 

Homes in Lismore (pictured) were destroyed and ADF troops were deployed to help with the clean up last week

Defence approached the SES again at 9.30 that evening to ask again, only to be told the same thing.

The following day, the army prepared to assist Queensland, which was the first state to be hit with torrential rain.

Just after midnight on February 27, two ADF helicopters flew in to aid the state’s SES and ordered 600 troops on the ground to get ready.

Just before 3pm that day, the ADF started preparing ground forces in NSW believing the state would call for support. 

But Defence was only requested the following day on February 28, when helicopters were asked by NSW to fly to Lismore.

The NSW SES told the Telegraph that members had been on duty since February 24, alongside other emergency services.

Some residents in Ipswich, west of Brisbane, are dealing with their third major flood clean-up in 11 years (pictured, rising waters on the Bremer River in West Ipswich)

‘Both NSW SES and other emergency services personnel and their equipment/vessels, were pre-positioned in northern NSW to help with the potential impending weather coming from Queensland,’ it said.

‘The record-breaking flood that occurred in Lismore was like nothing that had been experienced before. It came much quicker and more intensely than was forecasted.’ 

Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk last week lashed out at Mr Morrison for lagging on declaring a national emergency for her state’s south-east. 

Ms Palaszczuk rejected the move, claiming the national leader should have made that declaration in her state ‘a week ago’.

‘We’ve actually gone past that. The floodwaters have gone down, they’ve subsided, and… those (state) disaster declarations will be lifted on Sunday,’ she said. 

Mr Morrison pointed out that Ms Palaszczuk had ‘every opportunity’ to call for an emergency declaration and additional support a week ago, but she chose not to.

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