Clean-up and recovery efforts in northern NSW are being boosted with the arrival of about 1300 soldiers as the premier says helping devastated communities get back on their feet is his top priority.
The state government will do everything it can to help flood-ravaged communities in the Northern Rivers and on the state's east coast, Premier Dominic Perrottet said on Tuesday after spending days visiting affected areas.
NSW Police Deputy Commissioner Mal Lanyon has been appointed as northern NSW recovery co-ordinator and will work alongside Shane Fitzsimmons, the head of Resilience NSW.
The premier has promised to review how emergencies are dealt with once the clean-up is completed and says about 1300 members of the ADF will be on the ground in the Northern Rivers by the end of the day, joining some 1600 emergency services personnel.
Housing remains a major task, with 887 people in temporary accommodation. The premier promised an announcement soon.
"We will work side by side with you as we move through this difficult time," Mr Perrottet said.
"We are completely focused on the clean up, housing and providing financial support."
He acknowledged people felt let down by emergency services that were overwhelmed by the scope of the crisis, leaving many to be rescued by fellow citizens, while others were left homeless and isolated without food, water, cash, fuel and communications.
"I'm incredibly sorry," Mr Perrottet said.
Deputy Premier Paul Toole repeated calls for more on-the-ground assistance from the Australian Defence Force.
"ADF support is critical in ... ensuring that we are getting food to people in those areas," he said.
"We want to see more support, more ADF, more sets of hands on the ground supporting these communities that need it right now."
Emma Scott, 37, a project manager who lives at Tyalgum, near Murwillumbah, is one of many critical of slow government efforts to provide food and supplies to her village that was cut off after landslides.
"A week is too long to wait for support when your house is inundated with flood water, your animals are at risk, and you have no water, power, food, fuel or internet," she tweeted.
The premier acknowledged that without the "courage and heroism of so many people going out and looking after and rescuing strangers" there would have been more fatalities.
"It's very clear to me that over the course of this period during many heartbreaking stories that that's how many people feel," he said.
Mr Perrottet returned to Sydney to host a crisis cabinet meeting on Tuesday to deal with the challenge of expediting the clean-up and getting people into emergency accommodation but will return to the north of the state until Friday.
"My focus right now is to get this clean-up occurring, to get people into homes, to get money into the hands of families and businesses as quickly as possible," he said.
There are 18 evacuation centres in the northern region and 800 people are being housed in free accommodation in hotels and motels.
Cabinet will also consider other temporary accommodation options including campervans, hotel rentals and Airbnbs, as well as longer-term investment in social and affordable housing, Mr Perrottet said.
Meanwhile, St Vincent de Paul is offering grants of up to $3000 to flood-affected Northern Rivers residents as well as opening a flood-assistance centre in Lismore, Casino and Ballina.
© AAP 2022