Cootamundra residents are relying on the kindness of friends and strangers alike as they survey the flood damage to their homes

Cootamundra-Gundagai Regional Council's Andrew Brock is in charge of the recovery effort in the NSW south-west slopes town.

He said roughly 32 homes have been deemed uninhabitable, a figure he expects could rise as assessments are still ongoing.

He said the next few days will be spent liaising with other agencies to get a full assessment of the damage and finding accommodation for the families affected.

"It was a massive impact," he said.

"It's very, very early phases and it's now about coordinating all the groups that want to be involved. Just so we can get the help out to people as quickly as possible."

John Harriot lives with his father on Cootmundra's Parker Street, right on the Muttama Creek, his home has been ruined by flood water.

At 9.30 on Monday night Mr Harriot checked the creek which was still safely below the nearby bridge, 30 minutes later he was waking his elderly father in a panic to get to safety.

He was evacuated to the nearby RSL with 40 or so other people, "dogs, cats and birds", but the pair had no time to save any belongings.

"10pm it was coming in the front door, It was over chest height as we came down the steps to get out," he said.

"Everything is gone. The clothes that were up high are all we have left ... I still can't believe it."

On Thursday he was emptying the wrecked home of his personal belongings alongside friends and strangers. And while the house is sodden and strewn with debris, he plans to move back in, he said, as he has nowhere else to go.

"We're going to try and hose it out and clean it and move back in ... we've got nowhere ...I've been to the real estate agents, there's nowhere to live," he said.

"The government has put us up for two weeks at the Bradman hotel, apart from that we're homeless."

Jane Herring's creek-side home was busy with nearly a dozen volunteer workers on Thursday, pulling out damaged carpets and stacking soused belongings on the curb.

Ms Herring's Short Street home was inundated on Monday, and the 70-year old said strangers just keep turning up to help her with the recovery effort.

Her home was flooded with six inches of water she estimates, and she now faces a nervous wait for authorities to assess whether her property is safe to live in.

Ms Herring has lived at the property since 2000, her mother before her since 1983, and she's determined to stay put.

"I want to stay here if I can ... the assessors are coming tomorrow, they don't want me to stay ... but I've been sleeping in the house at night," she said.

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And if her home is deemed uninhabitable?

"I might ignore them anyway," she said.

Despite the damage to her home, she was upbeat, buoyed by the help of her community and the fact that her precious items, her library and theatre collection, remained untouched by water.

"I was really worried about my collection," she said. "Everyone has been so kind, these were complete strangers to me.

"How can I not be chipper when you've got such nice people helping you, it's when they're not around [that the tears come]."

"I am incredibly grateful."

Her friend and volunteer worker Bob Braid said he isn't surprised by the community.

"It's tremendous, typical of Cootamundra's friendly people, you just can't get enough of it," he said.