She's quiet, organised and level-headed.

Exactly the kind of person a community leans on in an emergency.

For the past few days she has been sleeping at The Hub, making sure any Gillieston Heights resident cut off from the mainland receives help when they need it; anything from food to medication, a port of call for the elderly and a shoulder to cry on.

Residents take their dogs for a leisurely walk around the block as kids tear up the street on their bicycles - it's school holidays but this time there will be no trips to the movies or sleepovers at a mate's place in Maitland.

Life on what the locals jokingly call "The Island" appears normal - but look closely and it's anything but.

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Most are good-humoured about the situation, but beneath their smiles lies a collective sense of frustration - as far as help from the state and federal governments goes, residents feel forgotten.

The suburb is entirely cut-off, residents are ferried to and from the 'mainland' at Maitland via NSW SES boat or unimog - an open back truck similar to those used by the Australian Army.

For Gillieston Heights' old guard, becoming isolated in floods has become an expected trade-off with the postcode.

But for new or elderly residents, the floods have been really stressful, volunteer Sonia Gannon said.

"We have a lot of new people here and we knew it was going to be difficult, this time isn't like the last time - we have electricity so we knew we weren't going to get food drops in a hurry," she said.

"I've been through it before, in these sort of things I'm just very quick-thinking.

"You've just got to band together and get things rolling, it was a matter of trying to keep everyone calm right from the beginning."

In the makeshift kitchen, Katie Ferguson and Jo Colefax are busy sorting through the generous food donations locals have dropped off.

The stories they've heard about disconnected elderly are harrowing, couples rationing an orange over two days - not knowing where their next meal is going to come from.

"We're trying to get to the elderly because that's what we're most worried about," Ms Ferguson said.

"We can go and ask for help - they're from the generation where they never did.

"They just go into survival mode, things like that have been really alarming."

It's been about eight days since residents were cut-off, and while there is some access to the mainland with the generous help of the NSW SES - families who work on the other side of the murky floodwater have struggled to bring in an income.

Ms Colefax has lost her wage, and with the government's $320 weekly payment she isn't even going to be able to cover her rent this week.

Part of the reason she's volunteering at the hub is to distract herself from the weight of the financial struggles at home.

"There's been a lot of emotion, today a lot of people are coming in crying," she said.

"I've just been hugging a lot of people here today.

"I've lost my wage, I'm getting $320 and I bring home a lot more than that to cover our bills so I'm struggling - I'm trying to keep busy because that's not even going to cover my rent this week, so I don't know what we're doing to do."

For those who can get out to the local shops for food, groceries have reportedly become more expensive as a result of the extreme difficulties of trucking over supplies.

Shelves have been stripped bare and workers are doing overtime to help keep the community on its feet.

Owners Kylie and Russell Dean have been at the centre of the bedlam.

"It's been chaotic, frustrating, rewarding, it's a combination of everything," Mr Dean said.

"You get to see everyone in the community's true colours - some really good and some really bad.

"Customer-wise I can't fault them, staff-wise I can't fault them, the 12 'natives' as I have affectionately christened them that are on the island with us have stepped up and gone above and beyond - I'm talking 15 and 16-year-old kids."

Getting food to the island has been no small task, having to load NSW SES trucks or boats with palettes by hand and unload onto a truck on the other side.

Mr Dean said a lot of locals are struggling financially, needing more support from services to make ends meet.

"Not everyone has a financial income, because they've had the effects of COVID, they've exhausted their annual leave and entitlements, they've drained their bank accounts and then they get hit with this," he said.

"They can't draw an income and the payment they are giving doesn't even come close to covering their rent let alone put food in their bellies, so I feel for the community in that regard."

Frustrations that have been brewing came to a head at a community meeting on Tuesday night.

The NSW SES and volunteers have worked incredibly hard to bolster the town, but the growing community of at least 4000 people want a permanent solution to isolation in floods.

Maitland and Cessnock councils will work together to ask the state and federal governments to reconsider the work and road design for Testers Hollow on the other side of Gillieston Heights, given the planned height ended up underwater.

Carol Cooper was at the meeting where more than 250 locals turned up, and said they're sick of politicians "passing the buck".

"They never bothered to ask the residents of Cliftleigh or Gillieston Heights anything when they decided to build the road up," she said.

"I was here in the 2015 flood and that time helicopters flew in with food ... we were looked after last time.

"This time honest to God, we felt like we were nothing ... we just didn't seem to get any input. People are just fed up I think.

"It's just like we're a forgotten island, Gilligan's Island."

Business owner Pip Scott-Allen was also at the meeting and said a lack of communication has been a major issue for residents.

"There's no actual answers, I walked out thinking, 'how long is a piece of string?'," he said.

"Everyone is tired of feeling like we're left in the dark.

"The community has done an amazing job of coming together to the point that I don't think some of the services know how good they have it, because of how well the community has assisted."

He said especially for business owners, accessing disaster relief payments hasn't been simple.

"I don't know anyone who has received anything, I know people who have applied and it's been a stressful process," he said.

"I know going through some of the forms it's so confusing and challenging that I think a lot of people give up, it feels like it's designed that way to limit the amount of successful people that can receive the funding.

"It's been a massive waiting game."

And, residents could be waiting a while longer with floodwater still covering the roads in and out of Gillieston Heights on Wednesday.

It's hoped they could have access to Maitland in the coming days, but until then, they'll have to stick together.