Major General Jake Ellwood appointed new QRA CEO

After serving as Queensland's State Recovery Coordinator following the South East Queensland floods of 2022, Major General Jake Ellwood (Retd) has today been announced as the new CEO for the Queensland Reconstruction Authority.

Major General Ellwood was appointed to the position by an independent panel and follows on from current acting CEO Jimmy Scott, who has been in the role since October 2022 after former QRA CEO Brendan Moon became coordinator general for the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA).

With more than 30 years' experience spent serving in the Australian Army, including missions to Kosovo, Iraq, Afghanistan and East Timor, Major General Ellwood has dedicated his life to the care and recovery of communities in need.

He served as Commander of the 1st Division, based in Brisbane, and as Deputy Chief of Army.

Major General Ellwood was also national coordinator for the Australian Defence Force’s response to the Black Summer bushfires in 2019-20.

He will now guide Queensland's lead agency for disaster recovery, reconstruction and resilience, continuing to progress the delivery of an active program of around $6 billion in projects.

During his time as State Recovery Coordinator, Major General Ellwood visited communities across all 23 council areas impacted by the 2022 South East Queensland floods.

Those visits informed the work he did with the QRA to develop the Southern Queensland Floods State Recovery and Resilience Plan.

Since its inception following the 2010-11 disaster season, the Queensland Reconstruction Authority has helped Queensland respond to more than 100 natural disaster events.

Major General Ellwood and the QRA are committed to ensuring Queensland remains the most disaster resilient state in Australia.