NEWS Of The Area had the great privilege of sitting down recently with three members of our local Red Cross who’d just returned from flood ravaged Townsville.

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The trio of Narelle Murray, Lorie Parker and Stephanie Perrott are volunteer members with the Red Cross Emergency Team.

When they got the call to help out in Townsville they didn’t hesitate.

“We go to the recovery centres and offer psychological first aid, “Narelle said.

Narelle has been a volunteer with Emergency Team for 12 years and the Red Cross is in her DNA.

Her Mother, who sadly passed away last year, was a lifelong member, and now Narelle’s daughter and granddaughter are carrying on the tradition.

Team leader Stephanie Perrott had been a humanitarian worker before retirement, working in war zones such as Bosnia.

In Townsville, Stephanie was based at the recovery centre set up in the Cowboys Football Stadium.

“People would come into the Stadium and they would always look confused as it’s such a big place, so the Red Cross would welcome them and point them in the right direction,” Stephanie said.

Lorie Parker was tasked with going to people’s homes with DOC’s.

“We’d listen to their stories and they’d give you a hug it was very emotional.”

In all, the women spent five days in Townsville, working long hours but finding it very rewarding.

In the past they’ve also helped out with the Newcastle floods and Raymond Terrace fires.

For the city of Townsville and surrounding areas, recovery will be a long time coming.

It’s estimated more than 600,000 hectares of farming land was flooded, hundreds of thousands of livestock lost.

In Townsville, thousands of homes too went under, the damage bill estimated in the millions.

The Tea Gardens Red Cross has eight members in its emergency team, and would love to welcome some men to the roster.

If you’d like more information, call 0419 621 644 or 0419 166 477.

By: Margie TIERNEY