Under storm clouds the couple had no choice but to leave their home of 18 years with a couple of bags and their two kittens as water crept up the walls.

“The storm fronts that came through on the Sunday, just kept coming and didn’t cease,” said Trich.

“We walked out the front and there was just water in the street, and we thought ‘oh wow we’ve never seen this before’.”

Despite witnessing the impact severe weather events can have on communities through his 20 years of working at RACQ, John was still overwhelmed by the devastation caused by the floods.

“Our areas were never considered to be a high flood risk, but on this day, it was a case of packing up a few belongings, our cats and wading out the front door,” John said.

“We came back when the water had subsided and started the clean-up process, including removing damaged items, taking photographs, and getting the insurance process going. We probably did ourselves a favour by lodging our claim as early as we could as it allowed the recovery process to start.”

Trich and John were lucky enough to stay with family in Brisbane’s northern outskirts while their insurance claim progressed and rebuilding works were carried out. Almost six months to the day since they left their flooded property, the couple moved back into their rebuilt home.

“To come back and see your home all restored, freshly painted, cabinetry and flooring reinstalled is a pretty great feeling. We don’t want to go out – we want to just stay here, go into our little corner that we have in the sunshine and be in our surroundings and soak it up for a while.

“The other thing we appreciate more than ever, is how wonderful family and community can be - they’re the people you turn to for help in tough times and you can’t put a price on that.”

The Ewings said the threat of another wet and wild summer is unnerving even when we live in a low risk area, but understand it comes with living in Queensland.

“In the back of your mind there’s always the thought of what will happen if we get another severe weather event,” Mr Ewing said.

“We learnt a lot through this experience, and as we put things back into cupboards, we made conscious decisions to ensure our precious items are stored up high, or items that do need to be stored on the floor, making sure they’re in plastic boxes, not cardboard.

“We also had our air conditioning units outside installed higher to reduce the risk of future water damage.”

Queenslanders are urged to take necessary steps to ensure they’re prepared for storm season.

Check list ahead of storm season:

• Check home building and contents insurance is up to date
• Clear gutters and downpipes, trim overgrown branches
• Carry out home maintenance, including checking your roof for damaged or loose tiles and sheeting which may need repairing
• Join an early warning alert service and get a copy of your council’s flood maps
• Have an emergency kit and emergency plan.
• Remove or secure loose items from the yard that could become projectiles

For more information visit our website.