Floods

The last few days have seen massive flooding in Southeast Queensland, the dynamic region where Whistlestop is located.  The worst is far from over, as I write this.  They are expected to peak tomorrow morning, and thousands of homes and businesses are expected to be flooded, as many already are.

Our town did not escape unscathed, with a massive flash flood sweeping through the creek area around which our town is built, with quite a few homes flooded.  It was so bad, and so sudden, that rumours quickly spread that our main water supply dam had burst, but fortunately that wasn't true.

I doubt that Whistlestop has been adversely affected, although I might be in for a surprise!!  We're very fortunate to be in a nicely undulating area, and we didn't receive the massive sudden downfalls that other areas experienced.  I think that it is a bit ironic that when I was laying the decomposed granite surface for the Trainbarn carpark in April 2010, it was the extreme dryness that made it very difficult!  We haven't had really good rainfall for quite a few years, now we're really making up for it!! 

I was reading a guide to building miniature railways such as I'll be constructing at Whistlestop, and just as Location, Location, Location is important to a successful business, the guide advised that Drainage, Drainage, Drainage were the important considerations for a miniature railway!!  It would be tempting, with such minimal rainfall for so many years, to skimp on good drainage,  but I'll do my best to heed the advice.

In any case my heart and prayers go out to the many people who are still living this flood nightmare, and who will be suffering the consequences for many months to come.  One trait of Aussies that I really appreciate is the way we pull together as communities in trying situations, and this has been abundantly demonstrated during this crisis too.  May that spirit long continue.