Kimberley floods: KPCA say herd numbers will take years to recover

Kimberley herd numbers will take years to recover as thousands of breeding herds and calves were washed away in floodwaters. Pastoralists estimate tens of thousands of cattle have been killed in the one-in-100-year which was not only a huge financial loss but was also deeply distressing. Kimberley Pilbara Cattlemen’s Association business development officer Lauren Bell said it would take years to rebuild the stock numbers which had been 700,000 across the region before the flood. “The majority of them were breeding herds so the production losses from the diminishment of the breeding herds will continue on for a number of years before people can rebuild their herds.,” she told ABC Kimberley radio “Unfortunately at this time of year, people typically have their calves on the ground because there is normally better feed availability so that’s going to have an immediate impact on this year and next year’s production capability. “Aside from just financial, the loss of stock is very distressing and we are very aware that this flooding incident will have quite a significant mental or emotional toll on people and we are going to be mindful of that moving forward.” The weather system caused by ex-Tropical Cyclone Ellie was centred near Halls Creek on Tuesday, January 3 and moved slowly west throughout the week — causing major flooding from Fitzroy Crossing to Broome. The hundreds of millimetres of rain dumped on the Central Kimberley caused catastrophic damage to cattle stations, homes, and towns and led to the partial collapse of the Fitzroy River Bridge. Heartbreaking footage was posted online of cattle struggling to swim while being washed away downstream. Brooking Springs and Fossil Downs stations had their homesteads flooded, while Jubilee Downs and Noonkanbah stations were also severely affected. Camille Camp, 31, of Kalyeeda Station, 200km southwest of Fitzroy Crossing, said their 122,000ha property was almost entirely underwater. Ms Bell said aside from huge stock losses the damaged road network was one of the biggest challenges for the industry. “Without that road network, the east and west Kimberley is totally cut off from each other which has significant impacts for the entire industry, not just those affected pastoralists.” “Pastoralists are now cut off from their live export routes and the Kimberley meatworks,” she said. Also, thousands of kilometres of fence lines have been impacted by the flooding. Ms Bell said they were hoping the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development would activate their state support plan for animal welfare to assist pastoralists. “That just allows them to provide more resources to assist pastoralists in terms of providing feed and relocating stock where necessary and dealing with the issue of carcasses. “The recovery is going to be a long-term process the loss of stock has implications for multiple years to come.”