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“Mateship” Should Be Required – The Amazing Australian Spirit!
Pursuant to my previous video post about the Brisbane River Floods in 2011, I also have to comment on living through that experience as an American living in Brisbane, Australia.
My flat is less than one kilometer away from the Brisbane River, yet the flood had little to no effect on my belongings or experience of life…I didn’t even lose power throughout the whole event.
On the other hand, tens of thousands of people have either been forced from their homes, or have lost their homes and belongings all together.
Throughout this experience, it has been the attitude of the Australian people in Queensland which has amazed me.
As stated, I’m an American living in Australia since 2001, and having grown up in Florida, I ‘m used to the potential of natural disasters (hurricanes) happening several times per year.
I grew up with the expectation of experiencing a natural disaster potentially at least once a year, but these poor Brisbanites don’t have much experience with major natural disasters.
This is a special place weather-wise.
Sure there is the odd hail storm or off-shore cyclone which brings days of rain, but one of the great things about living in Brisbane is that very fact; the weather is usually pretty good.
Except for this year; it rained for weeks at a time in the middle of summer, which has not been the norm since I moved here 8 years ago.
The dam was up top 180% of its capacity – it can only go to 200 % capacity before it starts to spill over; then the flash flood in Toowoomba happened.
This major storm system dumped an incredible 30 millimetres of water in minutes.
The river banks in Toowoomba broke and major ripping waves of water washed through the city; throwing trucks and cars around like toys. Then the dam management team decided to dump a bunch of water from the dam in preparation of another 3 days of rain predicted.
And it kept raining…
This all culminated in the Brisbane River flood of 2011.
OK, so what about that Australian spirit of “mateship”?
Having lived through Hurricane Andrew, which devastated a huge portion of South Florida, I saw the worst of the American spirit come out in people. Panic buying was a horrific experience with people grabbing and struggling against each other.
Tempers were short and emotionally charged eruptions between complete strangers were happening in stores and gas-stations everywhere I went. It was a very “get out of my way, that’s mine” attitude.
The Americans seemed to be less supportive and more combative as the hurricane loomed…
In Brisbane, I knew I should do some preparation, so two days before the floods were supposed to start, I went and picked up some basic supplies, and the stores were their normal easy-going experience. I wondered to myself why no one else was “stocking up”.
It’s because they’re not practiced natural disaster victims.
The next day was a completely different experience. It suddenly hit everyone just what was about to happen, and the authorities suggested that workers in the CBD should vacate the city. Well that caused mass panic buying and mobile phone calling.
I went back to the store to pick a few more things, and couldn’t believe my eyes!
The same stores, which were functioning as normal the previous day, were almost bare of the basics like batteries, bottled water and fresh meat.
But what I also noticed was an amazing open attitude and community spirit beaming from these Australians in disaster mode.
I watched a man offer a pack of bottled water to a woman who couldn’t reach the top shelf, despite that there only being two packs left. He was totally willing to share one of the last two packs. That wouldn’t happen where I come from.
The lines at the check-out were expectedly quite long, but they were alive with chatter as complete strangers were chatting and supporting one another.
The check-out cashiers were interested in how each customer and their family were faring, and this was heart-felt interest, not fake or patronizing. And each customer was asking after each of the cashier’s families because obviously they were stuck working while everyone else was in preparation-mode.
Then the Brisbane River Flood of 2011 happened. For three days some watched in horror, while others experienced the horror.
And two days after that, the waters started to recede quite quickly. It was then that the devastation in the aftermath of the flood seemed overwhelming to so many.
That was until the Australian concept of “mateship” kicked in, and the entire population kicked into high gear and started helping complete strangers.
The television stations, which only 48 hours before were showing waters 8 feet deep and complete neighborhoods underwater, were now showing hundreds of volunteers roaming the streets offering help to any local who needed it.
It was absolutely inspiring to watch the locals become overwhelmed with thanks and emotions.
Since it was the weekend, the Mayor formed 4 x 4-hour sessions across Saturday and Sunday, for volunteers to sign up for help. The mayor coordinated these clean-up efforts via an interactive website. They then used city buses to transport the volunteers to all of the areas requiring clean-up.
Again I was amazed at how quickly it was organized, but of course they had a Brisbane River flood plan!
A week later and the clean-up is still underway in many areas, but today was the end of the official clean up. The mayor stated that 6 months worth of city rubbish has been carried away in the past 10 days. That is the Australian spirit in action!
That is a story worth reporting…
So if you ever have to be in a natural disaster, you should hope you’re surrounded by Australians, or if you ever get a chance to bring an Aussie into your life, treat them well, because they will lay down their life for you!
Long live mateship…;)
Write On!
Please visit the official Queensland Flood Aid Website if you would like to help in any way. There are many ways to help out besides just cash, so please check out the site.
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