Flood disaster for arts sector

Artists and organisations in northern NSW and south-east Qld have been badly impacted by the latest extreme weather events.

A ‘rain bomb’ across northern NSW and south-east Queensland has severely impacted arts organisations in two states.

The damage is especially bad in the Northern Rivers region of NSW, where two people are confirmed to have died and central Lismore was inundated. At its height, the Wilson River peaked at 14.4 metres, causing the worst flooding in history and rising so high that Lismore Regional Gallery was inundated.  

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Richard Watts is ArtsHub's National Performing Arts Editor; he also presents the weekly program SmartArts on Three Triple R FM, and serves as the Chair of La Mama Theatre's volunteer Committee of Management. Richard is a life member of the Melbourne Queer Film Festival, and was awarded the status of Melbourne Fringe Living Legend in 2017. In 2020 he was awarded the Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards' Facilitator's Prize. Most recently, Richard was presented with a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Green Room Awards Association in June 2021. Follow him on Twitter: @richardthewatts