Local community group Rebuild Pappinbarra is hoping their efforts to attract government attention to fund Disaster Relief Australia (DRA) will allow the dedicated crews to return to the area.
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The flood recovery phase is far from over and with DRA crews unable to continue their much-needed work due t depleted funding, the community is calling for assistance.
The Rebuild Pappinbarra group started a Facebook fundraising page to help keep DRA and the flood clean-up going.
Rebuild Pappinbarra spokesperson Heather Smith said although fundraising efforts have been disappointing, the group is hoping the government will step up and help.
"We're trying to focus on government assistance to help fund DRA and allow them to return," she said.
"We have raised $340 from the community, so now we are lobbying to the State and Federal Government to help out."
There is still a long road ahead for people who were impacted by the March floods, with the clean-up expected to last weeks, if not months.
"It's a massive job. DRA left about 10 days ago and now they're actively working to get funding to be able to return," Mrs Smith said.
DRA is funded by corporate supporters, namely Mindaroo Foundation, and Clubs NSW.
DRA's deputy director of capability Chris Perrin said DRA is talking with their supporters in the hope to secure more funding.
"They haven't said no or yes at this stage, so there is no assurance that we will get funding from our supporters to return," he said.
"A lot of our sponsors have supported us during the bushfires and are now low on funds because of Covid. It has been difficult for us to get the funding because of that.
"We would definitely like to get back to the area because there is still a lot of work to get done."
Mr Perrin said Port Macquarie-Hastings Council supported their efforts while they were in the area.
"We don't blame government anyone for us being pulled out and council was very supportive of us and our work in the area," he said.
There is funding available from Resilience NSW for out of area volunteers which covers the cost of their stay at camp, however it doesn't cover the cost of flying in volunteers, which can be a significant cost for DRA.
"Hopefully through the ongoing negotiations with our supporters we will get the funding," Mr Perrin said.
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