Message from Brisbane

[Marmora Man]

I received the following message from friends in Brisbane - an interesting example of a community getting together to help each other out.

"I have been so impressed with the clean up after the floods that I thought that I would write and describe it to you all.

On the Thursday and Friday after the flood there was an appeal for volunteers to help with clean up on Saturday 16th Jan, the volunteers were to go to a central location where they could park and leave their cars. They then had to go and register and were allocated a house, building or area to clean and then they were taken to that location by bus. People not involved in the work were asked not to drive so that the streets were clear for the buses to get around and ensure that they were not held up in traffic.

Volunteers came from miles around, people even came up from Sydney, they actually had more people than they needed.

They spent Saturday taking all the mud, damaged carpets, furniture, washing machines etc. out of the houses and piled everything up on the pavement outside.

On the Sunday they asked for volunteers with pick up trucks and lorries to go and register and be allocated a stretch of pavement to go and clear and take all the stuff to a land fill site. Again everyone else was asked to keep the streets clear so that the lorries could get around.

So in just two days most of the debris was cleared although the poor people still have a lot to do to get their houses back to normal.

Everyone here was very proud both of the response to the appeal for help and also of how well it was all organised."

[daizie]

Awww that is so heart warming .

TUNNELLING under your neighbors house may take months of effort but imagine their faces when you surface in their living room

[Ladymuck]

That's nice. Most of us are capable of helping each other out - on a daily basis if we choose to. Interesting how disasters - like the flooding - tend to bring the best out in people.

An inspiring post, MM.

[Loz]

Sniff. A bit of nationalistic Aussie pride swelling up in this expat.

[Pam50]

Here's a few more tears Loz, just for Australia Day

[Keef]

Heard a couple of similar stories on Radio 4 the other day, and it is heart warming. Have a couple of friends who have had to leave their first house together, about a month after moving in, they were still getting drunk for Australia day though!

[Pam50]

http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/breaking-news/grantham-in-mourning-on-australia-day/story-fn7ik8u2-1225995006104

A bittersweet Australia Day for many in Queensland.

[Loz]

Keef Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> Heard a couple of similar stories on Radio 4 the

> other day, and it is heart warming. Have a couple

> of friends who have had to leave their first house

> together, about a month after moving in, they were

> still getting drunk for Australia day though!

Well you have to get your priorities right in life. In any given natural disaster, you should always find time for few cold ones.

[MrBen]

The calm, gritty Aussie spirit in dealing with it all has been impressive. And in stark contrast to the shooting and looting post Katrina. Different magnitude but telling all the same.....

[daizie]

CONVINCE your neighbours your dead by leaving your curtains shut, leaving the post to pile up and ignoring the doorbell and phone calls. If no one shows any concern after a week, they aint no neighbour!

[Annette Curtain]

Really daizie, silly comments like yours on such a subject really could upset some.

Actually I found my neighbor dead, yes dead as a doornail, her newspapers uncollected from the letterbox for days. When I looked through the back window there she was, lifeless under the sofa.

(I often wonder what was she doing under that sofa ?)

NO flies though

(that was a bonus)

:-SAnnette

[Sandperson]

MrBen Wrote:

-------------------------------------------------------

> The calm, gritty Aussie spirit in dealing with it

> all has been impressive. And in stark contrast to

> the shooting and looting post Katrina. Different

> magnitude but telling all the same.....

Wow, that's a pretty sweeping and damning statement.

[Narnia]

Looting in Brisbane. It has happened there too.

[MrBen]

I'm sure it has but it was on nowhere near the same scale, severity and to the best of my knowledge the Aussies have yet to start shooting each other....

[Bellenden Belle]

My guess is that the gap between rich and poor is probably much greater in Katrina and that the levels of poverty would bring about that level of looting. Whereas I imagine the gap is far less great in Brisbane, so that people in the same situation are more likely to experience empathy for each other in this situation and help.

[RosieH]

And feel less deserted by the authorities.

[david_carnell]

News from Katrina:

*shot of white people*

"Here are some folks hunting for food - the American spirit"

*shot of some black people*

"Look at those looters going into shops!"

[siousxiesue]

:))

david_carnell Wrote:

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> News from Katrina:

>

> *shot of white people*

>

> "Here are some folks hunting for food - the

> American spirit"

>

>

> *shot of some black people*

>

> "Look at those looters going into shops!"