Lawyers will commission an independent hydrodynamic report before deciding whether to proceed with a class action on behalf of thousands of Brisbane and Ipswich flood victims.
If the class action does go ahead it will potentially be the largest of its kind in Australia, Maurice Blackburn Lawyers partner Rod Hodgson said today.
Mr Hodgson said the findings of the Floods Commission of Inquiry issued today, which showed southeast Queensland's Wivenhoe Dam was operating outside the state's flood manual for two days, strengthen the case of a possible class action.
He said further modelling and investigation into the effects of the dam's mismanagement was required, which would likely take several months.
"We believe more likely than not the class action will proceed, but we don't go off half-cocked," he told journalists today.
"We make sure that our evidence is strong enough to be able to say to our clients, 'we believe that you have reasonable prospects of winning this action'."
Mr Hodgson said the firm would search across the country and abroad for a team of hydrology experts to conduct an independent report in a bid to identify which properties may not have flooded with the proper management of Wivenhoe Dam.
"We're looking in a number of places [for hydrologists] and we're advanced in those investigations," he said.
"It's likely to be some months before we're in a position to have a clear idea of what the hydrodynamic modelling shows."
Mr Hodgson said the findings confirmed what many people suspected: "that too much water was allowed to accumulate in Wivenhoe, and the strategy for water releases was botched.
"The dam operators did not release enough water early enough and that meant far too much was released later on.
"It's clear that at least some of this disaster was man made."
The class action would be conducted on a no win, no charge basis.
"If we win we are paid, if we don't we are not paid," Me Hodgson said.
Ipswich Councillor Paul Tully said the report was not the whitewash he’d expected.
‘‘It is quite explicit. It really opens the doors for a class action,’’ he said.
‘‘It is an opportunity for people who were not insured and lost everything to be able to recover something.’’
Mr Hodgson said it could possible take four years to reach a resolution should a class action proceed, although he would welcome an out-of-court settlement.
“The process of a model litigant is where no silly games are played. And there is a joint commitment by the parties to an early, sensible, compromised resolution, rather than it dragging out for years,” he said.
Fernvale and Surrounding Communities Action Group spokesman Dennis Ward said flood victims were “pleasantly surprised” with the outcome of the inquiry, but were not only seeking compensation.
“It would be great to see an apology for what happened,” he said.
“We also need to see some justice to be done.”
Goodna flood victim Dave Carney, 70, said he was waiting for the operators of Wivenhoe Dam to admit their wrongdoing.
“What I suspected all along and what a lot of other residents suspected – that [dam operators] did the wrong thing in the first place – was right,” he said.
“They decided they better not let us know that.
“I’m not vindictive. Everybody makes mistakes and they’ve obviously made mistakes. But the only thing they’ve done wrong is try to cover it up.”
Maurice Blackburn is working with litigation funder IMF to investigate the class action.
So far, 2000 Brisbane, Ipswich and Brisbane Valley flood victims have expressed interest.
Earlier today, Premier Anna Bligh acknowledged the legal threat but said a breach of the dam’s manual did not prove Seqwater, the government-owned operator of the dam, was liable for damage to thousands of homes and businesses.
‘‘It opens the possibility of legal action, but it does not, of itself, establish liability,’’ she told reporters after receiving the report.
www.BrisbaneTimes.com.au
16.3.12
