Beyond the Deluge
Leith Mooney
Leith survived the flood in two hours. The real survival took two years of contamination, undiagnosed injury, and learning that help means sitting beside someone in silence.
You don't have to be in crisis to call.
Leith Mooney had watched the river at Walwood for twenty years. He knew its patterns, its history back to 1908, the way it sat higher before a flood. On July 6, 2022, the water came up two metres in two hours. By then, his father had been dead for seven months and his dog for five. The flood itself took ninety minutes to enter and leave his house. What came with it stayed far longer.
When the water receded, Leith found the septic tank had been pushed through every room. Raw sewage contaminated everything. He and Karina spent weeks in a tent on the roadside, then months apart while he worked non-stop to salvage what he could. The help that actually showed up came from water delivery drivers who arrived without being asked. Emergency services did not come for two weeks. Leith spent over a year running on adrenaline and pain medication, refusing to stop, convinced that if he just kept moving he could fix it all. It took him months to understand that surviving the flood itself was the point.
Two years later, Leith is still pulling things apart and deciding what stays. The house is repaired now, but it does not feel like home yet. What changed most was not the building but how he sees help. The moment that shifted everything was a coworker who sat down beside him without saying anything, just so he knew he was not alone. That simple act of presence, when everything else felt impossible, showed him what people actually need when the world falls apart.
⚠️ Content advisory: this episode discusses grief & loss, which some listeners may find distressing.
If you need support, you're not alone. Help is available: • Lifeline (24/7 crisis support): 13 11 14 · lifeline.org.au • GriefLine: 1300 845 745 · griefline.org.au
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