Lismore flood anniversary: Tinny army awarded for flood heroics

Lismore Mayor Steve Krieg has honoured a group of locals dubbed the "tinny army" with medals a year after they jumped in their boats to help rescue strangers trapped by floodwaters.

"It's certainly been a day of reflection, that's for sure," the mayor told A Current Affair host Ally Langon, while revealing he shed a tear earlier in the day while reflecting on the disaster's anniversary.

"It really is a community effort."

The mayor said he was proud of his town but there was still have a long way to go to recover and many things the community still needs.

"This is a housing critical crisis," Krieg said.

"People are camped in their own houses, there's beautiful homes with no internal walls and we've got pod villages set up as temporary homes which people could be living in for up to five years."

Krieg said some people were stuck paying for mortgages on homes they couldn't live in.

"That is the tragedy of it," he said.

The mayor said while all levels of government had been supportive, the town needed to see action soon. He wants to see the town recover because he doesn't plan on going anywhere else.

'All of a sudden you had this huge responsibility'

The A Current Affair host said Krieg had only been in the job two months when he was suddenly faced with the "huge responsibility" as the flood crisis struck.

Not only was his town flooded, but Krieg also lost his own home and businesses. 

The mayor was quick to praise his wife for helping him get through the tough times. 

"My wife is an absolute legend, we have three kids at home as well and she has been the true rock of our family," he said. 

Krieg said his wife helped with the cleanup in the community and kept their family together while he tried to drum up support for the town. 

"Everyone chips in and does what they can," he said.