At the height of the flood crisis that decimated large parts of Australia in late 2022, images of the devastation were widespread and confronting—the surging floodwaters, the irreparably damaged property and infrastructure, the displaced and suffering animals.
What you may not have seen, though, are the faces behind the destruction. The farming families staring down the barrel of the unthinkable—total decimation of their homes and livelihoods—alone and cut-off from the supply lines and support they so desperately needed.
Heidi, Jackie and Scott Darcy examine the kilometres of dried flood debris caught on their fences
The Darcys, farmer Scott, his wife Jackie and daughter Heidi, were one such family. Like many of their neighbours, the Darcys’ fodder stocks and crops were completely wiped out as a wall of water from the overflowing Wyangala Dam bore down on their Forbes property in November 2022.
In the subsequent days and weeks, the Darcys’ 1,800 sheep faced starvation. Rural Aid’s delivery of 480 tonnes of hay to the region on 15 December, 2022, could not have come soon enough. With neighbours and friends pitching in to get the hay to the stranded property, the Darcys were able to keep their herd alive with feed every four to five days.
The Darcy family feed Rural Aid hay to hungry mobs of sheep
Speaking from the sodden remains of his land in late December, Mr Darcy said, “The sheep behind us, we just fed them with donation hay from Rural Aid, who have been fantastic.”
“The generosity of the Australian public has been fantastic. It’s good to know the Australian spirit is out there to help farmers in need,” he said.
Though the Darcys survived being cut off for more than seven weeks, with the metre-high floodwaters having compacted the paddock soil rendering it untillable, the knock-on effects look set to be felt for many seasons to come.
“It’s the biggest flood the Lachlan Valley has seen for lifetimes,” said Mr Darcy.
“Losses are in the hundreds of thousands of dollars, some people probably millions of dollars. Some people won’t ever recoup from it,” he said.
Broken depth markers scattered across the flood-damaged riverbank in Eugowra
While Aussie farmers are no strangers to trying times—with the last several years having brought long-term drought, bushfires, plagues, and a pandemic to contend with—for some, the flood aftermath presents the greatest challenge yet.
Rural Aid CEO John Warlters wants Australia’s flood-affected communities to know they are not alone.
“The water has receded, and it’s now that all of the hard work truly begins. People have to pick up the pieces and get their land back into some semblance of order. It’s not just their home, it’s also their business, and losing just one of those would be difficult enough,” he said.
The December hay drop at the Central West Livestock Exchange in Forbes came just in time for Christmas
Along with the 16,000 sheep and cattle already fed with donation hay, and the approximately 150 hours of volunteer assistance dispatched to Eugowra in March 2023, Rural Aid has further hay drops and volunteer missions planned for the coming weeks and months.
Your support helps fund these vital recovery efforts to rebuild the bush and support those that feed our nation. Thank you for standing with our mates in the bush when they need it most!