A local garlic farmer, Mark O’Toole, also my fellow ADF Helicopter evacuee and community responder, has spoken to us about his life, and how he got to be one of the Lismore region’s heroes, in the past few months. Here is his story:

“I was born in Sydney and spent about four years in Sydney, then we moved up to Coffs Harbour, for another four years then about three years at Ballina and then did my high school up at Sunshine Coast. I was an only child”.

Mark's Father, Mark and his Beloved Grandfather

“After that I moved back to Sydney, to do an apprenticeship with my grandfather in car upholstery and then ended up running it for my grandfather until he retired. After that, I just wanted to get back out of Sydney. I had had enough of Sydney.”

“I spent about 15 years there and then I moved back up to the Northern Rivers, where my Dad was living, and still is, as a Cattle farmer in Richmond Hill.

“I bought a farm in The Channon, where we planned to set up some cabins, and run cattle, but I split up with my kids Mum, and moved back down to Port Macquarie, where I managed to farm for about three years”.

(Family photo with Mark's dad)

“And then I got the kids. Cheyenne was 3, Eliza was 8 and Texas was 9. So I've had the kids 12 years now. I also got custody of Chris, my other son, 10 years ago”.

“Because my father was up here, we decided to move up here. And I've been here ever since’.

(Mark and son Texas)

“I was contracting as a fencer, but soon realised that bringing my 3yo with me wasn’t going to work, so after a month, and working for a garlic farmer next door, I said, basically, I'm gonna have a go at growing garlic. I said, don't pay me in cash for the harvest so I started with 50kg and just built it up from there. I’ve been growing garlic ever since, as Madison Downs Organic Garlic, and have become a local expert on bacteria and disease.”

I asked Mark how as a Single Dad he coped with this sudden change in lifestyle and he said “it was very life-changing, it wasn’t about me anymore, but I just learned how to do it, and had support from the community, a lot of locals that were friends, gave me a hand in the beginning, and basically, the only female contact the kids had, was their Aunty, from their mother's side, she's been you know, like the forefront woman in their life”.

With regards to what this strong family of five have been through in the past few years, Mark says “well we've suffered a lot in the last three years with weather. Just last season we should have pulled out six times what we did, but had a big loss due to bacterial issues’. 

“So basically broke even this year, because it was too wet last year, we got rained out the last 10 weeks before we harvested which is the only time that you can't get rained on for garlic”.

(Garlic harvesting in better times)

“So we basically lost over half our crop, then we have had to buy fresh stock again, for this season, which was meant to go in by Anzac Day, but it’s been so wet, I’m still waiting, the latest we can put it in, is June, so I'm starting to get a bit worried”.

“The first seven years, it was bulletproof, I just planted, and harvested and didn’t do a thing”.

“Now I've become like the disease specialist for garlic on the north coast because no one up here knew anything about it. No government department knew anything to help farmers either”.

(A ute tray load of garlic)

So after hard years in farming, Mark and his family, found what he says he thought was his family's “dream spot'. My kids and I are very big on feelings and vibes and this was home. In Bungawalbin, it was just as though this is where we should have always been. I had just bought special bedroom sets for the kids, it was starting to get set up and feel good”. 

“On the Friday, before the first major flood, when we actually got blocked off I thought, I can't get to work today. I will set up all the kid's new furniture. So I did that, and then by Saturday, it was all starting to float.”

“The two girls had decided to stay in town thankfully, so they could get to work, and by Saturday, the landlord's brother rang me to ask if I could rescue his Sister, from her place lower down on the property”

“I had told her that if the water got on her grass, to ring me, but the phones and communications were down”.

“Lehann was floating on her bed, I waded through belly button high water to get to her, and found her stuck on her bed, so I took her back through raging water coming from all directions to our place, where the river had already broken the banks and was chest height getting back ”.

“We lost our footing and went about 20 meters sideways, which was very scary. I don’t know how but I found footing and we got back to my house. And then I pulled the tinny up to the verandah, where I waited for the water to go a little bit higher, so as to float properly, and then got Lehann my son Chris, our cat and two rats and dog DJ, and myself into the boat'.

“We then sat there, as it raged and the boat moved to the back of the house, I was worried we were going to get caught under the Verandah, so I just tied a rope on and we just hung on in the rain”.

“That was the longest night I've ever had. Because we kept the generator going until it went under. So we were charging our phones”.

“The Army helicopter came in Monday night. He came in and he's hovered over us, they stayed there for about six or seven minutes and then just took off. So, I thought, well, if they can't get us out then we are in it for the long haul”.

“By the time they rescued us, Tuesday afternoon, Lehann had nothing to eat, no water or anything for over 3 days and she was starting to go downhill”.

“That Monday night we just sat there huddled in the pouring rain and the mozzies at a Bungawalbin are fierce, so we were just getting smashed, plus the rain and having to bail out the boat every hour or so, I just kept turning my phone on to check when the helicopters might come back in daylight, & hours, 6 hours.. “

“Then we heard the army helicopter coming through the paddock. Our property was full of trees, and they were bending in half, I was worried it would kill us, the roof lifted and hit me in the head. It was like something out of a King Kong movie”.

“The Army Rescue Operator coming down the line, went through a hole in the roof, and then Chris and he, after Lehann was safely inside, got caught in the aerial. He had to come back down, unhook and untangle them both, I’d so love to meet him and thank him”

It was at this point, when the chopper flew and landed in our mutual neighbour's paddock across the road, with my little girl, and our neighbours, that I first met Mark. Chris and Lehann, and I will never be able to explain the gratitude I felt to see them in the helicopter, the first thing I asked the rescuer when he came to get us, was “Did you get the Suffolk’s, are they OK?”.

After that, and having to leave their dog DJ, Mark went back, out of the Evacuation Centre at Lismore, and on a craft with 3 other men, he had never met, they managed to find him, on a mound, having narrowly escaped. This image went viral and soon, Mark, Dave and his new friends were publicised as what Mark says “was a chance for hope for all the community, that something good can happen, even in this catastrophe”.

Mark then went on to rescue people, pets and livestock, taking lifesaving medical supplies, food, water, generators and supplies to the people cut-off in outlying areas from Ellangowan, to Bungawalbin for 5 weeks, and was one of the crews I supported as a coordinator ongoing, to respond during the second flood event. 

I personally have seen Mark on a watercraft, be it a ski or boat, day-in-day-out for that first 6 plus weeks, and now, Mark has continued his efforts, but not without personal sacrifice and injury. 

At the end of the recovery efforts of the second flood, Mark had what we were so worried would happen to all our community responders, he hit some debris in the water, knocking himself out, and sustaining broken ribs, a concussion and damage to his liver. 

Mark left hospital and was then unfortunate enough a week later to severely crush his hand, while working on his own property, landing him back in surgery, and hospital for several days, with broken bones again. 

This has not been enough to stop him however, he has still continued to advocate for the wider Lismore community, and through his story and advocacy, has been able to secure some housing solutions for vulnerable members of the community, with support from Rotary Australia (Rotary and BDC housing our most vulnerable.) 

“After 9 weeks with this rain and families in tents, and mud, we need to do something, and this is a long-term solution”. 

Restaurants and local buyers who want to sample their uniques smoked garlic and natural cloves can also contact Mark on 0434382255.