Hi, I was just wondering could you please do a piece on folks like us? We are just some of the many people who are 'falling through the net'. I’m a long term local and a business owner. We own a local small (and up until now) successful delivery business. We broke up for Christmas like everyone else did and should have returned to work New Years ........ But the fires came. We lost all of our work and now we have zero income We can’t get Centrelink help because when we do work we run a successful business. Our business premises were not damaged so we can't make any claim. Our home wasn't damaged so we can't make any claim. We weren't even eligible to receive any help from the Evacuation Centre hand outs of hot food during the electricity cuts because we were not evacuees. Now, after not working for about 9 weeks we are very stressed, worrying and scared. With no hope of work, no way to get support and no where to turn. Yet we’ve been told we are the lucky ones, we didn’t lose a home we still have our two trucks. But we can’t pay the rent or our bills. No doubt there are many in the community just like us. The ones who fall through the net. There are millions of dollars being donated from worldwide. But not a single dollar will come to many in the community who have lost incomes. Incomes that pay for mortgages, car loans, electricity, rates and mounting bills. All we qualify for is a New Start allowance and a free consultation from a mental health specialist at the Bay. Thanks for listening
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