Jasper devastation laid bare in new report

Cyclone impact

Shaun Hollis

Journalist

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Tour operator Brett Wright surveys some of the damage after Cyclone Jasper hit in late 2023.

Close to $300m worth of losses hit the Douglas Shire in the months following Cyclone Jasper, a new report estimates.

The tropical cyclone, which struck on December 13, 2023, was followed by drenching rains and flooding - the Daintree River set a new record level by more than 2m of 15.85m and the record 24-hour total rainfall of 714mm was recorded in Mossman on December 18.

“It appears likely that at least some of the negative effects continued to be felt up to Easter 2024 with the total impact therefore likely to have approached $300 million,”  the Economic Impact Assessment Report of Tropical Cyclone Jasper, tabled in last week’s Douglas Shire Council meeting, found.

Mayor Lisa Scomazzon told the meeting there was a lot to be learnt by everyone from the latest report into the disaster.

“We’ll learn and move forward,” Mayor Scomazzon said.

Only about 30 per cent of Shire businesses who responded to the report’s survey said they received adequate support from governments after the cyclone, and more than 51 per cent found the paperwork was too difficult when applying for that support, she said.

“Wow,” Mayor Scomazzon said.

The report showed Far North Queensland “doesn’t fit the same glove” as the South East Queensland region, the Mayor said.

Cr Damian Meadows said the report showed how significant the financial impacts had been.

“It filtered down through every tier of business in this community,” he said.

“It’s how we respond to that, and it’s how we send messages out post-disasters from now on, is what we’ve really got to manage well.”

The council commissioned the Conus Business Consultancy Services report to help better understand the impact of Jasper on Shire businesses.

According to the findings, DSC’s Gross Regional Product was estimated to have decreased by $56.3m, with 100 per cent of businesses who responded to the survey saying they had been affected.

About 97 per cent of businesses said they had lost more than $10,000, more than 32 per cent lost from $100,000-$500,000 and 20 per cent lost more than $500,000. 

The decline in gross tourism expenditure was estimated to be from $92m-$105m and there was about $5m worth of agriculture - mainly sugarcane - losses.

Other major impacts were on water and waste pipelines and other services, as well as road damage.

Five days after the cyclone, on December 18, all roads into the Far North were closed, there was no road access to Cooktown or Port Douglas, and all four range crossings providing access to the Northern Tablelands were closed, it stated. 

And, within Douglas Shire, there were 95 council-controlled roads that were closed and the Daintree Ferry also suffered significant damage.

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