Mackay - Floods

_{26 February, 2008}

Ms JARRATT (Whitsunday—ALP) (12.25 pm): I spent much of last Friday, 15 February, glued to
the Bureau of Meteorology’s website watching a dark blue and yellow blob swirl around a spot on the
map occupied by the city of Mackay. As I watched, reports began to emerge indicating that the city was
experiencing a rainfall event unlike anything in recent memory. Indeed, more than 600 millilitres of water
had fallen in a six-hour period. This was on top of previous rain that had saturated the soil and filled
drains and waterways in the district.

The radar website confirmed that a tropical low had parked itself over the city and was delivering
rain at a rate never before recorded in Mackay. During the night and into the early hours of Friday
morning, many homes were inundated. While there were some miraculous escapes and associated
injuries, no lives were lost.

The SES, Emergency Services staff and police were all activated to assist, but in many cases it
was neighbour helping neighbour that saved the day. In the aftermath of the flood I have been very
deeply touched by stories of courage and generosity shown by ordinary people in extraordinary
circumstances. If there is a positive message to take away from the terrible events, it is the reawakening
of a strong community spirit in the city of Mackay. Stories abound of people leaving their own inundated
homes to assist stricken neighbours and of people turning up in affected areas with barbecues or plates
of sandwiches to do what they could to help.

We now know that thousands of homes have been left damaged by the water and that around
450 of these will take many months to repair. So the Premier’s announcement that the President of the
Master Builders Association, John Gaskin, has been appointed to help oversee the rebuilding program
is most welcome.

The member for Mackay, Tim Mulherin, will return to Mackay this week to help coordinate the
recovery process. While it is true that the areas of Mackay covered by my electorate of Whitsunday
have generally fared quite well or relatively well, I know that Tim will keep me informed of progress as
the city moves into the rebuilding phase.

Of course, Mackay is not the only centre to receive rain over the past few weeks. I reported to
parliament during the last sittings that the town of Airlie Beach had experienced a wet and wild night that
left many boats destroyed and one group of charter boat passengers high and dry. As happened in
Mackay, the community rallied around those affected by these events. On my return from parliament I
joined members of the community in a clean-up effort aimed at collecting the pieces of boats that had
washed up on the beaches. This effort was aimed at assisting boat owners in identifying their boats to
insurance agencies as well as generally bringing the beaches back to their former pristine condition.

The area certainly has received a great deal of rain over the past few months, but we do live in the
tropics. I am pleased to report that last week we had perfect Whitsunday weather, with clear blue skies
and calm, turquoise waters. Herein lies the problem. During the rain event that beset the Whitsundays,
national television coverage was quick to tell the world about the adverse conditions. However, during
the week of perfect weather not a second of airplay was to be found. Unfortunately, this pattern of media
coverage has very serious consequences in areas like the Whitsundays that are fundamentally
dependent on tourism for their economic wellbeing. I understand that the media want to report rain and
storm events and that the sight of 40 boats washed up on rocks is a newsworthy event. However, when
this coverage is not balanced with the news that the rain has gone and we are again open for business,
many businesses suffer because people have already cancelled their holiday bookings.

Last week I spoke to one business owner who told me that he had cancellations out to June this
year following the exposure the area received on television morning shows during the rain. People in
Sydney and Melbourne do not understand that in the tropics it is a case of rain one day and fine the next
and that, from a tourism point of view, the rain simply helps the area look more beautiful than ever.

Following parliament this week I am returning to Mackay to support Mackay Tourism Ltd’s
Tourism Week activities because I know that, despite the terrible time the city has had, its tourism
operators are back at work and hungry for business. So here is my challenge to the media: do not report
just the bad times; come back to Mackay and Airlie Beach and show the world that we are open for
business and that we welcome visitors who want to share the magic of wonderful island resorts like
Brampton, Daydream, Hamilton and Hayman islands, stroll along the beaches at Cape Hillsborough or
Whitehaven, see the playful platypus at Eungella or take a great walk through the rainforest at Airlie
Beach. The Bligh government is injecting an additional $150,000 into promoting those parts of
Queensland. I call on our state’s media outlets to step up to the plate as well.

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