Storms: a "Titanic" moment?

A false sense of security

The usual monthly Russell Island Association meeting on Saturday was not a happy one.
We were all smarting from the storms and particularly from the loss of power for four days but most of all from not knowing what was going on.

It was not supposed to be like this: the power outages of the past were supposed to have been fixed by the building of a substation on the island. 

Many people on Russell had a Titanic experience.

It wasn't just the smelly mounds of frozen meat and other food being taken to the dump or the trees being ripped up: it was not knowing what was going on.

Unlike the mainland where the radio stations were keeping householders reasonably informed about local problems, we had nothing or worse, misinformation about when and what services would come on line:

• Russell Island's only retail food store, closed suddenly when the blackout came in an effort to save the cold stock.  No generator backup and no explanations.
• Without power and no hand pumps, the only service station was closed too. Thus there was a wild rush to the mainland to pick up more fuel for generators.
• We soon ran through what ice was available from the local liquor store
• The Bowls Club remained open because it had by some miracle power on.  Those who knew were able to find refuge there and contributed to a giant cook out to keep people fed.  But many were in the dark and assumed that it, like most of the rest of the islands was shut down.  
• RSL Club, that was shut tight and was not online until a day after power was restored. Up until the power cut, it had been a rallying point with the big screen television giving news of what was happening in the wider world.
• It was next to impossible to find out when and where ferries might arrive so people could not plan shopping trips to the mainland--even if they could get there through the downed trees and powerlines.

On Macleay, it was nowhere near as bad because at least one of the foodstores had a generator and the Council was able to keep it running with a delivery of fuel. 

But the biggest problem was just not knowing. No disaster recovery centre had been set up for the island. No emergency routines had been put in place despite appeals for many years for some clear plans to be put in place. 

It would be easy to blame the victims here: every household should have had enough to see them through but we are not talking about a normal population here.  The population has doubled on Russell in the last ten years and seen an influx of urban dwellers rather than people used to the rigours of isolation that the older residents were prepared for. If you hadn't noticed it is almost impossible now to buy a phone that will work without being plugged in.  Smartphones died as batteries petered out. Even if you did get through to the electricity people you were given wildly optimistic times for power restorations.

And there are aspects that are only just coming to light: many of the newly installed and mandatory household sewerage plants require power to operate--how much damage has been done to them and consequently to the environment is not known. 

This was systemic failure.  We didn't hit an iceberg but we were victims of the same kind of thinking both from authorise and at a personal level.  When the Titanic went down, enquiries found the deficiencies and safety at sea was vastly improved.  Will we learn the same kind of lesson from this minor disaster or will it all be forgotten until the next time?

The only retail establishment open on Russell after the storm was the local bottleshop.

Harp of the South

Colin Offord playing his haunting music at the Arts Complex

 Colin Offord is an unusual talent:  crossing the boundaries between music, instrument craftsmanship and visual arts within communities, he is bringing new perspectives to what it means to live on the Southern Moreton Bay Islands.
At the end of January, he will be attempting an ambitious community program by building a huge musical instrument out of the very ground of Macleay Island.
The Earthharp will be constructed of long piano wires stretched between trees.  The vibrations from these wires will be conducted into holes in the ground to create resonant rich sounds.
Colin Offord and Yilan Yeh will conduct workshops to both build and play the instrument.
"The structure can be played solo or by small groups and it is an excellent instrument for developing musical skills and originalities through improvisation" said Colin.
Commencing January 30 the programme will run on Tuesday through to Sunday on  at 13 South Sea Terrace, Macleay Island.  In the mornings between 10am and 12 the focus will be on building the instrument and developing the site.  In the afternoons between 3pm and 6pm the sessions will be for playing music developing techniques and working through ideas on how to use the unusual instrument
For further information telephone 34094874, email info@colinofford.com or go to the www.colinofford.com website

The project is being sponsored by the Regional Arts Fund which is a partnership of the Queensland Government and the Redland City Council.