Having family who lives in Brisbane, I am lucky that none of these events have really touched them. I can't but wonder at the turn of events that prevented us from moving there two years ago as we originally planned. It reinforces that God really does care for me and my family.
I have to wonder too at the idea of building large commercial cities on the banks of rivers right where they meet the sea. Brisbane is a port with shipping on a regular basis. It is the same with New Orleans. Too much of the wrong weather and both cities were devastated. Toowoomba is a largish city as well. Flood plains are not called that without reason. Sooner or later there will be a flood.
Will sense ever prevail - hardly, since the size of the cities are too large to just abandon to the fates. There was a flood in Brisbane in 1974 so it stands to reason there will be floods in the future. Homes can be made flood proof or as flood proof as possible; in the future it should be the demand of insurance companies and councils that new houses are built only above the height of floods (on stilts - like the old Queenslanders) and/or have rooms that can be totally sealed off so that possessions can be safely stored during a flood event.
Insurance premiums will undoubtedly rise again, to help defray the costs of having to pay out on the floods. Some food stuff costs will go up from crops destroyed during the floods being unavailable. Mostly these sort of costs never come down again. It will be harder for the poor to afford these things. There is a sort of selfishness involved in these sort of lifestyle choices whether made consciously or unconsciously.
We are seriously reconsidering our choice to move to Brisbane now.
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