“There was no fan for that ‘certain substance’ to hit but it floated up into the roadways anyway”… says someone once from ‘the council’ on the spot but who doesn’t want to be named.
'The flood’ hasn’t hit yet and the “Swampies” are preparing themselves for the eventuality. But what nobody wanted to believe would happen has preceded it.
The storm water pipes that are in ‘Swampy Territory’ also carry much of the sewerage. So, in the downpours Launceston has had over the years these pipes are known to have backed up and overflowed.
There are all kinds of dastardly stories of toilet overflows and raw sewerage in the street that nobody wants to talk about.
Missing in action it seems are the ‘big wigs’ from council. Most missed amongst them are the Mayor and General Manager.
It seems that the kind of thing that gets you votes can be left to underlings when the elections (accountability time) are about three years away.
However, how do the overlords get any kind of idea about what the real problems are if they never ever see it for themselves?
Down there in 'Swampy Territory' the infrastructure is very old and mostly build against the odds. Its not a great vote base for the Mayor either it seems.
Launceston is Australia’s third oldest settlement and there are good arguments that say none of this area should have been built upon – but it was!.
Quite a lot of this ‘drainage’ infrastructure is at sea level and sometimes its below it. Therefore, where it can ‘drain to’ is always an issue.
For example, the duck pond in City Park can only be drained at low tide – our anonymous ex-council person says. It’s a proposition that is easily tested however.
There are two stories in the Examiner that should be ringing alarm bells in the Mayor’s office at Town Hall.
One, “Inveresk Tavern ruined in floods” [LINK], that talks about how “on Thursday and Friday, Inveresk Tavern owner Charlie Rayner watched on helplessly as stormwater and sewage filled his beloved new pub…. We tried sandbags, but there was nothing we could do," he said. "It just kept coming - through the drains, under the door. The infrastructure couldn't cope." And the financial stress of it all
The funny thing is this story doesn’t appear until Sunday and only then it would seem because “someone had rattled The Examiner’s cage”. The circumstantial evidence is evident.
The other, an Examiner Editorial, “Health alert for floodwaters, ''particularly'' Invermay”, [LINK] tells us that “TASMANIANS have been warned that floodwaters across the north and east are potentially contaminated with sewage, particularly in the Invermay area. .... Acting Director of Public Health Kelly Shaw said dirty water, mud and silt that floods create, can cause a range of conditions, including gastroenteritis and skin and soft-tissue infections....``Public Health Services advise that where possible people avoid contact with flood surface waters,'' he said……..
All this together raises important questions to do with, upon what advice was the State Government, UTas and Launceston Council acting upon in imaging a future for UTas at Inveresk?
Indeed, what advice was Launceston’s general manager offering Aldermen? What was its source?
Also, what independent advice did the good Aldermen seek in order to lend their unanimous support for the now infamous MoU?
The questions go on relentlessly from here and the 'Swampies' are now saying "we told you so ... but we know nuffingk!
Bowen & Vale
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