Armidale Regional Council will hold a community recovery event to thank those involved in the clean-up and recovery operations in the aftermath of Armidale tornado in 2021 and to celebrate the resilience of the community following the devastating weather event.
The event called Celebrating Our Resilience will be held in Armidale Town Hall on Wednesday October 18 and will mark two years since the Supercell hit Armidale overnight on Thursday 14 October 2021.
The tornado cut a 40-kilometre path and a four-kilometre-wide swathe through rural, residential and educational domains in Armidale, knocking down power lines and leaving thousands of homes without power.
“The breakfast event is to provide an opportunity for the Armidale community to connect and acknowledge the two years since the Armidale tornado,” said Armidale Regional Council Mayor Sam Coupland.
“Events like this celebrate our region’s resilience and ability to help and support each other in times of severe adversity.
The tornado caused damage to many homes and properties where it struck but as a community, we pulled together to help those impacted to get back on their feet.
“At this event we will be officially thanking all of those involved in the clean-up and recovery, including Council teams, SES, BackTrack, NSW Police, Rural Fire Service, Fire & Rescue and Country Energy who all worked tirelessly as well as many local organisations and businesses who volunteered.
“There will also be stories of resilience and photos shared about overcoming the challenges of the tornado damage with the support of our community, from the Mayor Sam Coupland and Council staff member, Justin Hu.
Ali Flynn, a local to Armidale and host of the international podcast Challenges that Change Us, will share her personal story of grit and willpower to help other with their journey of overcoming challenges in their life.
Local schools, including students from Armidale Secondary College, Ben Venue Public School and PLC Armidale, impacted by the tornado, have been invited to perform at the breakfast event.
UNE’s new Vice-Chancellor, Professor Chris Moran, will also be supporting this event, as the UNE campus was significantly impacted by the tornado.
At the University of New England, Armidale campus alone, there was 17.6 hectares impacted and 250 trees needing removal.
The waste removed from the Campus between the event and November 2021 was 700 + tonnes of green waste and 12 tonnes of building waste.
To support the community with their recovery and preparedness for future weather events, local emergency services and community service providers have been invited to provide information at the event.
“It is well known that connected and prepared communities are more resilient to disasters,” said Mayor Coupland.
“The community recovery event has been initiated by Council’s Community Recovery Officer, which is a position funded by the Australian Government and NSW Reconstruction Authority, to assist after the Floods in February 2022.
“An important part of the role is to facilitate community recovery events following severe weather events, such as storms and floods and provide information to the community on preparing for future severe weather events.”
Celebrating Our Resilience will be held on Wednesday October 18, 2023 at the Armidale Town Hall from 7am to 10am with a free community breakfast cooked up by the Rapid Relief team who also provided over 1600 meals during the clean-up.
