If Lismore – the centre of the New South Wales northern rivers region – was to be represented in a single image, it would be a heart.
A longtime symbol for the area, used after flooding in 2017 and in tourism campaigns, it has taken on a deeper meaning in 2022. The city of more than 27,000 residents suffered two record-breaking major flooding events this year, and is facing a painfully slow recovery with more than 3,000 damaged properties, thousands of displaced residents and a traumatised population.
