On February 28, 2022, Mal Lanyon was in the State Emergency Operations Centre in Sydney, watching the flood disaster unfold.

As a senior police officer, he was there to help coordinate the emergency response from the busy control room at Homebush.

He watched the disaster unfold across a wall of screens.

“It was clear that it was significant, to an extent we had not seen before,” he said.

Seven days later, the Premier appointed Mr Lanyon as the Northern Rivers recovery coordinator.

Mr Lanyon said he knew things had to happen quickly – restoring services and fixing roads were a priority in those early months.

“I don’t talk about debris, it’s people’s belongings,” he said of the piles outside homes.

Three years on from those days when relentless rain filled our rivers and overflowed into our homes, Mr Lanyon is chief executive of the NSW Reconstruction Authority.

He is the fourth person to oversee the flood authority. First, there was Resilience NSW led by Shane Fitzsimmons set up by the Gladys Berejiklian government. That folded and the Northern Rivers Reconstruction Corporation led by David Witherdin was set up by the Dominic Perrottet government in April 2022. The NRRC was ineffective and the promised numbers of buybacks, retrofits and house raisings did not happen.

The NSW Reconstruction Authority was a reset by the Minns government at the end of 2022 and it was chief executive Simon Draper in 2023 who delivered the news to the community about the incorrect numbers and funding. It meant a drastically reduced number of homes were eligible for buybacks, house raisings and retrofits. It was devastating news for people hoping to get their homes and their lives on track.

This is the situation Mr Lanyon came to in 2024 as leader of the Reconstruction Authority.

There has been continued criticism about the slowness of the flood recovery and especially the buybacks.

Mr Lanyon said he was aware of the flood impact on places such as Woodburn and Broadwater.

“With the magnitude of what has happened, you’d love to be able to do things quicker.”

The Reconstruction Authority has been focussed on buybacks, he said.

For places such as Woodburn and Broadwater that focus will change.

“We’ve listened to the community.

“We are focussed on resilience.

“If you’re looking for a house raise – we’re keen to make it happen.”

Mr Lanyon was in Woodburn last week.

He knows the community is concerned about the impact of buybacks on the town.

I’ve changed the way we do things, he said.

“We are giving residents money up front so they can navigate through.”

There will be people who have had work done and the authority can look at that retrospectively.

People who want to raise their house will still need a DA from the council, he said.

The authority will work with Richmond Valley Council to make sure DAs happen quickly.

The Resilient Homes Program will be sped up.

“We have a concierge service where residents can contact us.”

This new approach is yet to be seen. For the Resilient Homes Program, only 34 homes have been assessed and eight approved across Richmond Valley.

The Reconstruction Authority was given powers by the State Government that enables them to intervene in the planning for Broadwater Public School and make it happen quicker. The school is finished and will reopen in term two this year.

Mr Lanyon said the authority is working closely with the Hundys who own the supermarket in Woodburn. The authority used its powers to approve the demolition of the flooded supermarket building.

Clearing drains has been a priority with a $5million drainage reset program. Drainage work has been done at Dairy Flat, Thearles Canal, Coraki and Woodburn.

Mr Lanyon said they were very customer-focussed.

IndyNR.com said many residents didn’t think so.

“Our people do an outstanding job,” he said.

Mr Lanyon said he would “certainly apologise” if people thought otherwise.

IndyNR.com asked if the system was broken – is the Reconstruction Authority as a body working?

The system is not broken, Mr Lanyon said.

It was all about getting better and reducing risk before the next disaster, he said.

Coming soon was a Get Ready program with the SES and RFS.

“We are absolutely better prepared,” he said.

“We have improved significantly. We have learnt a lot.”

Residents can call about the Resilient Homes Program for retrofits and house raising on 1800 844 085.

Resilient Homes Expo

In March, the RA is hosting three Resilient Homes Expos in the Northern Rivers to help registered Resilient Homes Program homeowners who are looking to make their homes more flood resilient and community members seeking to relocate a buyback home to a new location.

The events are at:

The events are at:

• Lismore: Thursday, March 13 at 4–7pm. Invercauld House, 163 Invercauld Road, Goonellabah
• Tweed: Monday, March 24 at 4–7pm. Tweed Shire Council Auditorium, Civic and Cultural Centre, 10-14 Tumbulgum Road, Murwillumbah
• Clarence Valley: Monday, March 31 at 4–7pm. Maclean Bowling Club Auditorium, 1a McLachlan Street, Maclean.

The Reconstruction Authority is discussing with the council a possible session in April in the Richmond Valley. Details to come.

Read Funding helps council forge ahead with 1500-blocks at Fairy Hill for flood-free housing.

Flood stories are here in one place on indynr.com.

Watch the documentary Tinnie Heroes about the floods below.

This article appeared on indyNR.com on 1 March 2025.