Six months on from record-breaking flooding in WA’s north, Kimberley flood victims staying in foldable, emergency accommodation have no prospect of returning home.
More than 35,000 residents were affected by the floods, and four local governments were impacted.
Sally Marvin has been living in one of the temporary huts, set up in the town's caravan park after the once-in-one-hundred-year flood destroyed her community of Loanbun.
Onlookers have an uninterrupted view of the space where her community had set up camp.
Ms Marvin said the location of the huts could be problematic for children, who were exposed to drinking and fighting in town.
"People come in here and cause trouble," she said.
"We wanted them to move the huts back down [to Loanbun]."
Ms Marvin said not knowing when the rebuild of her home would be completed was unsettling for her family.
"[We miss home] very much, but it looks all different now," she said.
"Nothing there now, and it makes us [feel] like we’re not home anymore."
Around $34.3 million of state and federal funding had gone toward flood recovery efforts in the Kimberley, with a significant portion direct towards medium-term temporary accommodation.
Ms Marvin was at home with her family the night the floodwater tore through her community.
She said her son sprang into action.
"He saw the water rising and told me, ‘Mum we’ll have to get you out of here'," Ms Marvin said.
"He went and got a canoe from somewhere ... and told me to jump on the yellow canoe.
"My uncle's partner who is a dialysis patient ... he put her on his shoulder and carried her across, pulling the canoe at the same time."
She said the night was a blur.
"I don't know how fast it happened that night; we didn't know where we were," Ms Marvin said.
"He had to risk his life to get us out of there.
"[It was] scary; we didn't like it, but we had no choice."
Huts not built for large groups
The construction company Humanihut provided 100 temporary units to house Fitzroy Crossing residents who lost their homes in January’s flood.
Humanihut managing director Neale Sutton said the metal containers were designed for temporary use.
"It's a short-term accommodation fix to get them back into their homes eventually," he said.
"[It's] somewhere cool and comfortable to live in whilst work is being done by the West Australian government."
Mr Sutton said large family units were not considered in the initial designs, but work was being done to accommodate bigger groups.
"They’re not the best configuration for large families," he said.
"The next iteration, which is very close, is being able to provide much larger rooms that can take larger family groups."
The huts have been used for emergency crews fighting fires, quarantine and isolation facilities, and construction accommodation for workers overseas.
Mr Sutton said locals were consulted about appropriate sites and set-up and that cultural needs had been considered.
"When we go into a location, it doesn’t matter if it's the Middle East or Australia, we work very closely with that local community to ensure they are culturally sensitive," he said.
"Keep in mind, it's emergency accommodation — it's not something they're going to be living in for the next 20 or 30 years."
A Department of Communities spokesperson said keeping families together and on country was a priority for the state government.
"The quickest and most suitable option for communities to remain on country of return to country was to engage Humanihut," the spokesperson said.
"Longer-term temporary accommodation solutions are being considered in consultation with the community, for larger families or those whose homes need to be completely rebuilt."
