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| Brisbane Road Gailes during the January 2011 flood, looking west towards Goodna. |
HUNDREDS of Queensland flood victims have expressed interest in joining a potential billion-dollar lawsuit over the management of last year's floods.
Momentum is building for a class action against the Queensland Government after the state's flood inquiry found the government-owned Wivenhoe Dam operator Seqwater breached the dam manual during floods in January 2011.
Maurice Blackburn outlined litigation plans to 400 residents in Goodna last night.
They are expected to join more than 2000 Brisbane and Brisbane Valley residents who have already committed to taking on the State Government.
The meeting organiser, Ipswich councillor Paul Tully, said the flood destroyed 600 homes in Goodna, including his two-storey home.
Mr Tully said he intended joining the class action to recover losses not covered by his insurance.
"This could be a long, drawn-out process, but the prospects of ultimate success are very promising," he said.
He called on the State Government to establish a compensation fund to meet all legal claims and to avoid a costly legal battle.
"People deserve to be justly compensated now and not 10 years down the track when the 2011 flood is a one-paragraph entry in the latest history books," he said.
Flood mapping and modelling would be conducted to determine which areas would have flooded if Wivenhoe dam was managed according to the dam manual.
20.3.12
