When a Lismore local* found out that the Lismore Bunnings warehouse was in the process of destroying all of its products, he knew he had to do something about it.

Bob (not his real name) was employed to help in the process of clearing out the store after the flood - and said what he discovered was "criminal".

He said even products that had not been submerged in flood water were being sent to landfill.

“Going to waste”

He was shocked to see products the Lismore community desperately needs “going to waste”.

“They are crushing everything from gurneys to paint, building supplies, bathroom and kitchen fittings, lighting, BBQs, gardening stuff, power tools and furniture,” he said.

“It’s a big Bunnings and it could take weeks to clear out – even the racking will go.”

“Write it off”

Bob said that one of the other workers told him that Bunnings had been instructed by its insurance company to get rid of all store stock – that the company would “write off” everything.

“I was told it’s not an uncommon practice for insurance companies to do this.”

Bob said he believes only about 20% of the stock would have gone under the flood water.

“Everything else was wrapped up on palettes or high on shelves,” he said.

“Nothing wrong with it”

“There are 50 rows of stock in that shop and there’s nothing wrong with most of it.

“The people of Lismore really need these things right now to rebuild their homes and we don’t have any stores to supply it.”

Bob said fines applied to anyone who tried to take products away from the store, before they were destroyed.

Crushed

Bob said he had been told that no one was allowed to use any of the products - even after they were taken off-site by rubbish removal trucks.

“There’s an excavator on-site that crushes all products before they get placed into skip bins and taken away,” he said.

“It all ends up destroyed, in landfill and it just felt wrong to me.

Criminal

“I was feeling guilty for helping and it went against my sense of right and wrong. It’s criminal and should never be allowed.

“It this is happening at Bunnings, what’s happening at other big stores like Spotlight?"

“To make it worse, Bunnings brought in new equipment from other places to help with the clean up when there were undamaged products inside that could have been used instead.”

A number of concerned locals went to the Bunnings warehouse on Sunday afternoon, but couldn't get inside the store.

One of them told the Lismore App that the site manager told him everything in the whole store was going to landfill.

Call for help

Community organisation Resilient Lismore also sent out a plea to Bunnings asking the company to “immediately halt the mass destruction of goods and work with the community to distribute those goods for free”.

“Our community is desperate for equipment and building supplies and we need to be able to close and secure doors and windows and to make as many homes liveable and safe as soon as possible,” a spokesperson said.

“People in our community are driving for hours to Bunnings Warehouses in other communities and spending money they don’t have - to source goods that are getting harder and harder to get, and at the same time those exact supplies are being destroyed and sent to landfill.”

The Lismore App contacted Bunnings about the issue and received the following response:

Bunnings respond

Bunnings Regional Operations Manager, Alan Harvey said “as a result of the intense floods, the Lismore store is currently closed until further notice and there is an expert contractor onsite assessing and rectifying the damage, including removing damaged inventory”.

“Although some stock in the store was not submerged in the flood, it had been assessed by a hygienist and found to be damaged by airborne contamination and is unsafe to recover,” he said.

“The safety of our team and customers is always our number one priority and this stock is being disposed of.

“We understand how important it is for the community to access essential materials at this time and our team have set up a temporary pop-up location in our car park to serve customers.

“We want to thank our team for working around the clock in really challenging circumstances to get this up and running and we thank our customers for their patience while we work to get them the supplies they need."

Mr Harvey also said Bunning's teams have been active on the ground within local communities, helping in evacuation centres, donating care parks and products – such as drinking water, cleaning and safety products, and providing care for those who have been displaced.

“Our first priority remains looking after any team who are personally impacted, and assisting the wider community,” he said.

“With the help of our generous communities, we have helped to raise and contribute $500,000 towards GIVIT Storms and Flooding Appeal.

“Our community donations continue within the Lismore, Ballina and Byron Bay communities.

“We remain focused on how we can best service our communities in times of crisis, doing our part to support emergency services and community organisations with their recovery efforts, and being available for those who need us most."

*The person wishes to remain anonymous and has been given a psuedonymn.