The sound of rain on the roof is all it takes for Jayde McKenzie and her family to relive the moment their home was destroyed in a one-in-500-year storm event.
Now living in a nearby rental, Ms McKenzie says storms bring back horrific memories for her four children.
In less than four hours Upper Corindi, just north of Coffs Harbour, was hit with up to 500 millimetres in the early hours of February 25, 2021.
The children remember waking to the sound of water gushing through their rural property.
Ms McKenzie recalls scrambling onto the kitchen bench as water inundated the house.
The State Emergency Service (SES) received many calls for help from residents. Some had been forced to evacuate onto their rooftops as the water rose.
SES volunteer Jennifer Travis said she was heading to a rescue when she realised her house was flooded.
While she and the team performed rescues, she thought about her family, elderly neighbour and their safety.
"At that point, there was nothing I could do," she said.
With the knowledge her family knew what to do in an emergency, she says she was able to focus on the emergency unfolding before her.
"I knew that they would be able to find somewhere even if they couldn't get out, so I had to think about it that way," she said.
"You feel the pain of the community, the event itself, and the trauma that everyone goes through."
Rebuilding delayed
Like others in Corindi, repairs to Ms Travis's home are delayed due to building supply shortages induced by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Other natural disasters, such as a freak hailstorm that damaged hundreds of properties at Toormina last October, have not helped.
"While we personally had good insurance, we haven't been able to get a builder to come and finish the works," she said.
"So, 12 months on we are still faced with the effects of that night."
But Ms Travis is grateful she and her family can continue to live at home.
Taking a toll
Others in the community, like Jill and Barry Mitchell, are feeling the mental toll of the disaster.
The couple has called Corindi home for 22 years and endured several floods, but none as bad as last year's disaster.
Mr Mitchell said they had given up owning chickens because the pain of losing them to floods became unbearable.
While their house withstood most of the flood damage, the mental and emotional toll has been confronting.
"Every event has got harder because of age and medical issues," Ms Mitchell said.
When Mr Mitchell had to spend time in hospital, his wife had to deal with their insurance provider and the local council to progress repairs to their home.
"It was very strenuous on her, and I don't know how she coped. But she's a very strong woman," Mr Mitchell said.
The couple's garage is still full of boxes of belongings they have not moved back into their home.
"I still haven't unpacked the house at this stage," Ms Mitchell said.
For Ms McKenzie, support from the Coffs Coast community has got her and her family through the hardship of the past 12 months.
"People bringing food, stopping to ask if we need anything, cleaning supplies, buckets," she said.
"Without [the Corindi community], we wouldn't have got as far as we did. They really rallied around us."
The McKenzies expect to move into their new home by Christmas but have some trepidation.
"I don't know how we'll go once we move back up here with rain," Ms McKenzie said.
"All you can do is keep on keeping on."
