Rochester's Glenda Nichol is an Australian treasure.
She is one of many in the flood-ravaged town of Rochester, about 190 kilometres north of Melbourne, who have stepped up and become a rock for others as the community recovers from record floods.
Ms Nichol runs the town's business network and has been housing people displaced by the floods on her property, 12 kilometres out of town.
While devastating floods still threaten communities along the Murray River and its tributaries, Ms Nichol has also been helping Rochester business owners fill out applications for support payments and grants.
"Our bank is a big issue — we've really got to see that open," Ms Nichol told ABC Central Victoria breakfast host, Fiona Parker, during a broadcast from Rochester.
"They're talking about not opening until after Christmas … Bendigo Community Bank is our only bank,"
Ms Nichol has been driving to and from Echuca, Lockington, Elmore or Cobram to do the banking for businesses and people every day.
In the days after the flood hit the town, Ms Nichol door-knocked businesses to help people apply for flood relief grants.
Now, she is lobbying state and federal politicians for more support.
"There are some very tired, very worn-out people, and quite a few people don't have flood insurance — they weren't able to get flood insurance after the 2011 floods. So that is extremely tough," Ms Nichol said.
Recovering from metre-high waves
It has been three weeks since the Campaspe River broke its banks and flooded the town, almost 12 years after it was last wiped out.
The town's Presbyterian Church has been turned into a recovery centre where people can come for food relief, first aid and Centrelink or Services Australia help.
Marlene Orange watched the floodwaters roll in and rise on Friday October 14.
"A 1.2-metre wave hit the front of the house over a brick wall that sort of surrounds the verandah," she said.
Stephen Harris had to get medical attention for cuts he sustained while moving furniture during the flood event.
"Our local GP was really good. He's been putting in some mega hours," he said.
"He's rung me back after 9pm at night some nights, just to finish fulfilling the people's scripts throughout the day."
Household items and mouldy furniture line the streets of Rochester.
170-year-old homes inundated
Ms Nichol said the Campaspe River split at Elmore, surprising people and inundating 170-year-old homes never before affected by floods.
Rochester Community House has set up a donations page and the Rochester Community Facebook page has become a hub for local information.
Mr Harris is among the hundreds of people whose homes were inundated.
He is still not sure whether insurers will consider his house viable to repair.
"We're in limbo, like a lot of people," he said.
Mr Harris said his insurers had been good so far, but he knew of other people who had not been as fortunate.
"I know some people who their insurers still haven't been to inspect their home, three weeks later — and they're told 'don't touch anything until we get there'," Mr Harris said.
Older people forced into respite
Ms Orange's home was also flooded, but she said she felt for older people in the community.
"I know a few elderly people who had lived independently, sometimes with assistance in their homes, they've now had to go into respite and probably will end up going into nursing homes because they're saying expect not to be in your house for 12 months," she said.
"That's just really sad. These people have had to go out of their homes and out of their community."
Toby Acocks farms two blocks outside Rochester and another two at Barham and Barmah.
He said he would now be looking at putting levee banks up to protect houses in the future.
"Rochester as a township has copped an absolute flogging," he said.
"But it's probably been as good an example as you'll ever see of a community banding together to try and work through it.
"We're very fortunate to have a couple of significant businesses in town who took the bull by the horns and really got in early and got things going with all their staff and machinery.
"We've got some great leaders in the community, and they've all stood up and had a real crack the last few weeks. If there's a positive to come out of it all, that's probably the main one."
Rochester Secondary College and Rochester Primary School have relocated to Bendigo Senior Secondary College and anticipate seeing out the 2022 school year from there. Students are getting back to hitting the books after helping sandbag the town.
A temporary "village" has been set up at the Elmore Field Days site to house people displaced by the floods.
