Kelly Slater Slams Morrison Government For “Appalling” Flood Response

Surfing legend, Kelly Slater, has taken to Instagram to voice his disdain for the Morrison Government’s response to the Queensland and New South Wales floods, labelling it “appalling”.

In an Instagram story posted yesterday, Slater (featured image) shared an open letter from eco-advocacy group, Revive The Northern Rivers, to Scott Morrison, which painted a grim picture of the crisis, saying, “We wish you could smell the mud in Lismore today. The foul stench that suffocates the town.”

“We are tired and we are angry. But we will not give up,” the letter continued. “The time for your government to act is now.”

Kelly – who owns an apartment in the Palm Beach suburb of Gold Coast – reposted the letter, with his own caption agreeing with the author’s sentiments and slamming the lack of action from the Morrison Government.

“The lack of federal assistance in the flood zones in northern NSW has been nothing short of appalling,” he wrote.

“The stories from friends are hard to comprehend. But the gathering of local communities has been inspiring to watch from afar.

“[Scott Morrison] and cohorts pat themselves on the back or poke fun at people who ‘live in the gum trees’, the communities will continue to get on with the tasks at hand in helping their neighbours.”

Kelly also shared an open letter by a Northern Rivers resident detailing the horrific carnage wreaked by the floods and urging the Morrison Government to do more to tackle climate change, as well as articles by The Australian and thedailyaus reporting on the floods and the lack of Federal Government assistance.

The 11-time world surfing champion also shared a screenshot of a message sent by a friend living in the flood-devastated regions, with some disturbing insights.

“Mate there is absolutely zero help!” The message reads.

“People that have just been rescued have said that helicopters have just been filming him for 5 days. They drop nothing and just keep filming him day after day.

“The army turned up and filmed themselves unpacking a trailer then left… The stories that I have heard are just mind blowing. So many people dead and they have been withholding it for some reason.”

Slater isn’t the first high-profile name to comment on the floods and the lack of government intervention, with Pat Rafter – as well as Luke Hemsworth and Liam Hemsworth – helping cleanup efforts in Lismore, and telling ABC, “The one thing the government hopefully can do is get the aerial support because they do need that.”

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Floods Kelly Slater Morrison Government