Engineers ‘working their guts out’ to get Darwin Dam back online, Treasurer declares
The Northern Territory Treasurer has praised the work of engineers working desperately to get Darwin’s main clean water supply back up and running despite “rubbish” conditions following massive flooding in the Top End.
The regional health authority issued a “precautionary” boil water alert for the capital on Tuesday afternoon after the Darwin Dam was flooded on Tuesday, prompting emergency action by maintenance crews.
The Northern Territory Treasurer has praised the work of engineers working desperately to get Darwin’s main clean water supply back up and running despite “rubbish” conditions following massive flooding in the Top End.
Finance Minister Bill Yan was on the scene with responders just before midnight on Tuesday, where he said engineers were “working their guts out” to bring the dam back online.
“The road leading here is a dump. A crew out there is working their asses off tonight to repair that road to put another generator on it, so they can put it on the pump behind me and run it,” Mr. Yan said.
“Water restrictions remain for everyone in Darwin. We are not giving everyone a freebie just because we have turned the pumps back on. Be careful with your water, use it wisely so that in the future there will be plenty for everyone to use,” he said.
Darwin Dam managers said the “first step” of “complex restoration work” had been taken as of 9.15pm on Tuesday night.
“We have constructed an alternative access road that allows a convoy of the necessary heavy machinery to reach the dam site. The on-site generator damaged by the flood has been partially restored, with three additional generators en route to support our overall restoration efforts,” a spokesman said.
“We have a team of specialized technical personnel and contractors working around the clock. The safety of our crews and contractors remains our focus as we move into the next phase of our response.”
Further south, temporary schools will open to students in Katherine on Wednesday morning to provide “safe supervision” for Katherine’s children.
A spokesman for the NT Department of Education and Training said teachers from local schools would be involved in programs run by those schools, but students “may not be placed with their usual teachers or classmates”.
“The temporary schools will be open from 8.14am to 2.45pm. Since the buses are not running, families are responsible for transporting their children to the temporary schools and students must bring their own lunch,” the spokesperson said.
“These pop-up schools will help ensure continuity of learning and provide stability for children during this challenging time.”
Most schools in Katherine will remain closed until further notice.
In Queensland, residents of Bundaberg on the state’s south coast woke up on Wednesday morning to assess the damage caused by major flooding on the Burnett River, which was slowly moving towards its predicted peak.
Local resident Luke Johnston turned his Facebook account into a live stream of updates on flooding in the area, posting regularly throughout Tuesday night and Wednesday morning.
Images and images taken by Johnston show the extent of the damage in Bundaberg, which was officially interrupted on Tuesday afternoon when the regional council decided to close the bridges.
In a video posted on his page around midnight, Mr Johnston rescues a toddler’s tricycle from floodwaters that had been steadily rising throughout Tuesday night and were expected to peak during the day on Wednesday.
Bureau of Meteorology Senior Meteorologist Jonathan How said the river showed signs it was “about to peak” on Wednesday morning.
“The current flood warning at this stage shows flooding peaking at 20.6 meters this morning, although we could see it coming in slightly below that. Wherever it eventually occurs, we’re still seeing fairly widespread impacts across the region,” Mr How said.
“We have already seen the Burnett River crest upriver at Branyan, which gives us some confidence that the river will crest very soon.”
More to come
