Across Continents

Ken's Blog

Perceptions

January 15th, 2011

I’m sure his words were heartfelt. The offer of condolences to those who’ve lost loved ones quite genuine. Sincere. But as a reflection on how the Queensland floods are perceived around the world. Intriguing.

I’d been catching up on BBC coverage of the disaster. Watching an interview with a well known British public figure. Bit heavy on the crocodiles, although, to be fair, not that many of them around Balmoral so you could see how they might grab the attention. In all probability, if you do encounter one in Brisbane, chances are it’ll be somewhere between the elephants and the orangutans. In the zoo.

A much more credible threat is waterborne diseases. Waterlogged ground ideal breeding ground for mosquitos. Which accounts for quite a bit of Queensland. Fortunately, this is one of the few parts of the Tropics free of malaria. But no one would be surprised if Dengue Fever put in an appearance.

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Ominous signs..

January 15th, 2011

Bit of a pattern emerging. Bishkek. Central Asian city. Bloody riots a few months before I rode into town. Then there was Urumqi in western China. Civil unrest not so long ago. Now Queensland. Huge swathes devastated by flooding. Trouble, it appears, seems to travel ahead of me. Which is good news for me. But not necessarily so great if you’re in New Zealand or North America this year. I’m coming… You have been warned.

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Emotional times

January 13th, 2011

A passing aberration I told myself. Feeling for a politician. Anna Bligh. Queensland’s Premier. Morning press conference. Bit of a quiver in the voice. But she kept it together. To be fair, flood my cottage with mud and raw sewage, deprive me of sleep and I’d get a bit emotional. She’s got an entire State to contend with. Huge swathes devastated.

Amongst the saturation news coverage of the Queensland flood disaster, there’s been the odd glimmer of incidental humour. A piece this morning. Dwelling briefly on a flooded Brisbane milk factory. Before quickly focusing on the city’s submerged “XXXX” brewery. Extensive aerial footage. You could sense the tears.

Who knows whether the end is in sight. For the wet season continues into April. But do hope television schedules return to normal sooner rather than later. Can’t wait to catch a new Aussie reality show “Conviction Kitchen“. Not sure if it’s actually meant to be ironic

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A stoic nation

January 12th, 2011

Tropical downpour from Ken Roberts on Vimeo.

Queensland. I’d always known I’d be here in the wet season. But this year the rainfall has reached levels not seen for decades. Towns and villages flooded. Some several times in just a few weeks. Even, Brisbane, the State Capital not immune. Tens of thousands of homes expected to be submerged shortly.

The scale of devastation is difficult to comprehend. And, with much of population living along the east coast, the impact on people likely to be far greater than the geographic extent of the flooding might suggest. This isn’t a few rivers bursting their banks. This is de facto a national emergency. Three quarters of Queensland declared a Natural Disaster Zone.

The extent of the damage, to property, to the lives of individuals, is truly moving. Watch just a little of the saturation news coverage and you’d be hard pressed not to have a tear in your eye. And yet the people remain truly stoic. Ordered evacuations, precious few reports of panic buying, even less of looting. Perfect strangers helping residents rescue possessions. That the emergency services are able to cope as impressive. This isn’t New Orleans.

And no let up in sight. Ground saturated. An otherwise ordinary downpour a few days ago resulting in a devastating flash flood. Ripping through the town of Grantham. At least ten dead. The final death toll likely to be much higher. Flooding starting to shift south into the neighbouring State of New South Wales. And Cairns itself not immune. Flash flood warning in force earlier.

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