Central Maitland under evacuation warning tonight as structural concerns for part of the protective levee emerge. There is already water in parts of the CBD as the stormwater drains are unable to empty due to the height of floodwater in the river and Fishery Creek. It is being reported that this is the most severe flood since the disaster of 1955. One of our very elderly parishioners was living there in 1955 and tells of being transported away from home on a timber jinker, which had a high enough clearance to travel through the waters as the river broke its banks.
The prediction for opening of the Main North Railway, and I suspect the inundated highway which runs parallel, is next Tuesday. It will be some days after that before other roads dry out and the village of Gillieston Heights is no longer an island. There is much social media anger that a new supposedly flood-free road link currently under construction is now submerged.
You know, I can't remember seeing any of that on any of the news websites. Makes you wonder what has to happen to get noticed. Thanks for posting it.
I can still picture the front pages of the SMH during the 1955 floods, with aerial photos, aerial no less, and how dramatic they were. Many years later I saw the Hunter as it passed through the area, with that huge drop from Maitland High St to the normal river height. It really brought home just how much water must have poured down the Valley to cause such flooding. Are you safe where you are?
Yes we are safe. Our little town is on a rise, with creek valleys either side but well below. A couple of low-lying causeways over main drains went under water but have subsided now. If you search Eugene Koen Photography that will bring up some dramatic drone photography of the Fishery Creek area and Gillieston [Heights] Island, and a view north towards the river itself showing the inundated highway and railway. These are in a Twitter post, but you can view them without having an account.
The night before last I was reminded what wonderful neighbours I have. I had just turned on the washing machine so I could soak some things overnight, when it. died I panicked for a few seconds until I realized that the machine itself hadn't died (expensive) but the power had been cut. It was dark outside, and I wasn't sure where the matches were to light a candle. My neighbour over the road rang to say she had a sick child otherwise she would invite me over for a barbecue. Then my next door neighbour rang to ask if I was OK. I explained that I couldn't lay my hands on the matches so she brought some over. She said also said that she was going to buy burgers for tea and offered to buy me one, which was very welcome.
By the time she returned I had used the candlelight to find a headtorch and the power was back on. (thank you lines people).
Yesterday I bought a far brighter torch, a heap of batteries and a magnetic light to attach to the fridge. I've also made sure there are easily found sources of light near both front and back doors.
I also need to check out the small gas cooker which I bought during the quakes and find my tiny transistor radio. I would also like to have a stronger head torch because it's useful to be able to have both hands free in an emergency.
The power cut has been a useful wake up call for me.
Thanks for the link. I was 4 when the 1955 flood happened and recall sitting on my father's knee on the train to Singleton a few months after the flood. My aunt, uncle and grandmother's house there had water up to the picture rails, they lost almost everything.
..it's a week after the operation and her rehabilitation is moving from coping with operation recovery pain to pain causing exercises. I have been going out only for essentials, but, weather permitting, I can take a couple of ours out for tennis later this afternoon.
Glad to know she’s getting on ok. Tell her we are thinking of her.
Torrential rain here today - of course it's the school holidays, so I'm not surprised. According to the news item I read my street was closed for a while. As the river is tidal I must check when the next high tide is due. In the 31 years I've lived here (plus the 50years some former residents had been here, no evacuations had been necessary, so I'm crossing my fingers that all will be well.
I stayed home anyway, but tomorrow I need to get my second booster shot. Fortunately the venue is the Community Library where I volunteer so I don't need to go wandering around places I don't know.
All OK here. Every time we have s storm like this I am grateful to the lawyer who wouldn't let me put an unconditional offer on my house until he had checked whether the street had experienced serious flooding. Of course I am aware that it could be a possibility if the future, (climate change) but the City Council have done serious mitigation work recently.
Today we have a fine sunny day although the temperature is far from tropical.
I love lot about Aotearoa/NZ - the bush, the weird birds, Whittakers Chocolate to name a few things- but... for heavens sake, rugby is only a game. With all that's happening in the world, the major news bulletin tonight on Radio NZ led with more whinges and possible firing of various people because Ireland won a 3 game series of test matches. Personally I was hoping they would because all the pre-game propaganda was about how wonderful the All Blacks (the national side) are, and how the Irish were expected to lose the series.
I'm probably lucky that there aren't many Shipmates from my country, otherwise I might be shot at dawn as a traitor and I don't fancy getting up on these winter mornings before 8 a.m.
Lots of rain again. I doubt if any of you are Splendour In The Grass goers, but the rain has flooded and muddied it. We almost got caught in the queue on our way to meet friends for lunch and were delayed half an hour, but some festival goers were delayed by more than half a day and were confronted by session cancellations and waterlogged tents.
I have a confession - a friend from Northern Ireland went to NZ for the rugby, and I can't help feeling a wee bit pleased that his effort in going all that way was rewarded.
Also (no harm to the ABs or any of our esteemed Kiwi Shipmates), I like it when the underdog wins!
I, also like it when the underdog wins. And the the overdog (can't think of the correct term, if there is one) crowd goes into a painful navel-gazing about how they could even lose one game! Evenly balanced games are much more interesting IMHO.
Been in lock down since yesterday, 6 days to go, as my beloved has come down with covid. He got onto our Dr and is on the new viral meds for the over 70's! So far not too bad. We think he picked it up last Sunday from our minister when 6 of us went for coffee after church. The good Rev came down with it on Monday. Have caught up with lots of small tasks already.
Glad to read you were able to source some anti-virals as I've seen on the bird app that some people are finding that difficult. Putting in an appearance here as a new member from the bush capital.
I think it's the simple, everyday things that catch people unaware.
Dennis I hope your partner makes a full and swift recovery.
Doom and gloom - my local pharmacy has run out of purple N95 masks. They only have bright orange or white.
Is outrage!
O.K, so this is definitely a first world problem of someone obsessed with purple, but I liked my purple masks
Today we had a whole afternoon of sunshine and I managed to wash and dry some clothes, but the rain returns tomorrow. I wish we could bundle it up and send it somewhere it's needed.
I’m very into colour coordinated stuff too @Huia . I had to stop today as I passed our local register office and complement a lady on her wonderfully co-ordinated outfit. A lot of it was purple. I just hope her son, who was the groom turned up. She thought he was still in the local wine bar.
Trust all with COVID are going OK. Mrs Curly Senior has had it (over in Perth), and seems to have come through OK, with Mr Curly Snr not picking it up. It has been a tough week, though, as Mr Curly Snr is at the stage with his dementia where he doesn't understand why he can't go to church/shopping/coffee and has been quite argumentative about that.
Having been at the damp Bluesfest at Easter, the images from Splendour in the Grass are blowing my mind. I feel so sorry for everyone involved after two years of COVID disruption.
While sunny today, it has been wet here this week and everything is so damp, soggy and slippery. And the potholes are back! Everyone is a bit over it - acknowledging that, unlike so many, we are safe and dry in our homes.
@Huia, I did not know P95 masks were anything but white.
LKKspouse says her favourite clothes colour is a blue (the flower type I forget. Her wedding dress was a red gingham, but that was made by her sister-in law who did not think LKKspouse's dress made out of curtains was appropriate. (I bought a new pair of jeans for the occasion.)
Lovely and sunny in the city today. Working in the garden was actually quite hot. I'd love to be able to get some N95s in other than black/white. But I am just grateful that buying them is relatively easy. I'm sorry to hear about your Dad's difficulties Mr Curly, my Dad was a bit the same, especially about not driving, so I sympathise.
I have been loving the ability to have Telehealth consultations during COVID. We were even able to access a specialist in Sydney for our son (son is well-known to him) and also have a friend whose child is receiving psychological support from Perth. The ability to do this is wonderful and would be great if could be extended after covid, though I suspect it will not happen.
N95s at the local pharmacy come in a variety of colours - orange, light blue, lime green, black, white and red. Now only orange and white are left. I haven't seen this range anywhere else.
I was reading in bed last night and heard voices coming from my kitchen. As I live alone this was rather frightening. Damn cat had walked over the radio, turning it on. She was very fortunate not to be shut in the laundry for the rest of the night.
Of course I did, Gee D. Of course doesn't change her behaviour, but sometimes she does answer back with an angry sound. If she's in a bad mood she flounces off with her tail straight , and flicking back and forth, which is the feline equivalent of a rather rude human finger gesture. As my youngest brother once observed, "People give you the finger, but cats give you the tail."
In other more welcome news - it didn't rain today. There wasn't much sun and the wind had been sharpened on a whetstone, but the rain held off. Friday and Sunday are forecast to be dry as well. So far it looks as though August 1st will be sunny = YaY!!!
Bishop Arthur Malcolm, the first Aboriginal bishop in the Anglican Church of Australia, died peacefully in the early hours of Friday morning. Bishop Arthur and Colleen visited our parish on several occasions and we have fond memories of this inspiring but humble couple. Our former shipmate [redacted] who is now the diocesan of North Queensland and the current Aboriginal bishop Chris Macleod are at Lambeth, so I believe the Archbishop of Brisbane will preside at the funeral.
(ETA Ship identifier removed to avoid outing, Doublethink Admin)
A few days of sunshine and NW (warm) winds, which are always welcome in the winter, but can be too much of a good thing in summer. In July records were broken for both rainfall and high temperatures throughout much of Aotearoa/NZ.
I had a look at my roses with a view to pruning them, because the neighbour who knows about such things has just pruned hers, and there are new shoots on them already.
There's an excellent pruning guide here@Huia. Mr Swane came to my little school to give a pruning clinic to the children as our school rose garden was judged the best in the local rose festival, and this webpage follows his formula. His advice was to prune hard in winter, back by about two-thirds, and then again by about one-third in January.
The generation before us bought their roses from Swanes' as did we. Madame and I went to their classes on pruning and general rose care. The result is that the roses in our garden do well (one of the tricks taught was that in growing roses in Sydney you should give plenty of free space around to minimise mildew). From memory the classes were free, at least if you'd bought some roses.
A beautiful sunny day here, and warm enough, if you keep out of the shade. People were smiling in the street and in the supermarket (as far as I could work out because we were all dutifully wearing our masks).
I discovered a garden centre gift voucher that was dated 2018, so took it along and it was honoured. I bought a beautiful Blackberry Nip rose in memory of my mum and Grandad. We used to visit him, a journey which entailed a bus, a train and a tram or trolley bus, and in winter he would always give Mum a Blackberry Nip Liqueur to warm her up. This is the second one I've bought and I will plant it in a sunnier place than the first.
I don't know whether or not it is still made GeeD. I might darken the doorway of our local off license and see. Usually I only go there when I need to replenish the rum for the Christmas cakes or rum and raisin muffins. Actually I need a new bottle as I'm visiting my brother in care in November which means I can deliver a cake to the brother I'm staying with, thus avoiding the risk of having it stolen in the mail.
I used to drink wine, but an allergic reaction one Christmas Day totally put me off it for a while. I did try a product that was new to me in the local supermarket recently which was wine with the alcohol removed. It was absolutely horrible, but I'm not sure whether that was because it didn't have alcohol, or whether I wouldn't have liked it anyway.
There used to be a drink here called Claytons which was billed as "The drink you have when you're not having a drink." According to my parents it was horrible and it didn't last long on the market.
Comments
The prediction for opening of the Main North Railway, and I suspect the inundated highway which runs parallel, is next Tuesday. It will be some days after that before other roads dry out and the village of Gillieston Heights is no longer an island. There is much social media anger that a new supposedly flood-free road link currently under construction is now submerged.
I can still picture the front pages of the SMH during the 1955 floods, with aerial photos, aerial no less, and how dramatic they were. Many years later I saw the Hunter as it passed through the area, with that huge drop from Maitland High St to the normal river height. It really brought home just how much water must have poured down the Valley to cause such flooding. Are you safe where you are?
I'm having trouble finding that site but shall try again after morning coffee
The night before last I was reminded what wonderful neighbours I have. I had just turned on the washing machine so I could soak some things overnight, when it. died I panicked for a few seconds until I realized that the machine itself hadn't died (expensive) but the power had been cut. It was dark outside, and I wasn't sure where the matches were to light a candle. My neighbour over the road rang to say she had a sick child otherwise she would invite me over for a barbecue. Then my next door neighbour rang to ask if I was OK. I explained that I couldn't lay my hands on the matches so she brought some over. She said also said that she was going to buy burgers for tea and offered to buy me one, which was very welcome.
By the time she returned I had used the candlelight to find a headtorch and the power was back on. (thank you lines people).
Yesterday I bought a far brighter torch, a heap of batteries and a magnetic light to attach to the fridge. I've also made sure there are easily found sources of light near both front and back doors.
I also need to check out the small gas cooker which I bought during the quakes and find my tiny transistor radio. I would also like to have a stronger head torch because it's useful to be able to have both hands free in an emergency.
The power cut has been a useful wake up call for me.
Thanks for the link. I was 4 when the 1955 flood happened and recall sitting on my father's knee on the train to Singleton a few months after the flood. My aunt, uncle and grandmother's house there had water up to the picture rails, they lost almost everything.
Glad to know she’s getting on ok. Tell her we are thinking of her.
I stayed home anyway, but tomorrow I need to get my second booster shot. Fortunately the venue is the Community Library where I volunteer so I don't need to go wandering around places I don't know.
Today we have a fine sunny day although the temperature is far from tropical.
I'm probably lucky that there aren't many Shipmates from my country, otherwise I might be shot at dawn as a traitor and I don't fancy getting up on these winter mornings before 8 a.m.
Huia - go and wash you hands thoroughly after writing such heresy.
Also (no harm to the ABs or any of our esteemed Kiwi Shipmates), I like it when the underdog wins!
Talking about AFL, not that other "football".
Dennis I hope your partner makes a full and swift recovery.
Doom and gloom - my local pharmacy has run out of purple N95 masks. They only have bright orange or white.
Is outrage!
O.K, so this is definitely a first world problem of someone obsessed with purple, but I liked my purple masks
Today we had a whole afternoon of sunshine and I managed to wash and dry some clothes, but the rain returns tomorrow. I wish we could bundle it up and send it somewhere it's needed.
Having been at the damp Bluesfest at Easter, the images from Splendour in the Grass are blowing my mind. I feel so sorry for everyone involved after two years of COVID disruption.
While sunny today, it has been wet here this week and everything is so damp, soggy and slippery. And the potholes are back! Everyone is a bit over it - acknowledging that, unlike so many, we are safe and dry in our homes.
mr curly
LKKspouse says her favourite clothes colour is a blue (the flower type I forget. Her wedding dress was a red gingham, but that was made by her sister-in law who did not think LKKspouse's dress made out of curtains was appropriate. (I bought a new pair of jeans for the occasion.)
Certainly the case in NSW and Vic and ( in your case) probably via Launceston General respiratory service
We spoke to the Dr receptionist who had one of the Drs call back, was all done by phone and emails.
I was reading in bed last night and heard voices coming from my kitchen. As I live alone this was rather frightening. Damn cat had walked over the radio, turning it on. She was very fortunate not to be shut in the laundry for the rest of the night.
That would be an exercise of the utmost futility. Might as well talk to a cup.
In other more welcome news - it didn't rain today. There wasn't much sun and the wind had been sharpened on a whetstone, but the rain held off. Friday and Sunday are forecast to be dry as well. So far it looks as though August 1st will be sunny = YaY!!!
(ETA Ship identifier removed to avoid outing, Doublethink Admin)
I had a look at my roses with a view to pruning them, because the neighbour who knows about such things has just pruned hers, and there are new shoots on them already.
I discovered a garden centre gift voucher that was dated 2018, so took it along and it was honoured. I bought a beautiful Blackberry Nip rose in memory of my mum and Grandad. We used to visit him, a journey which entailed a bus, a train and a tram or trolley bus, and in winter he would always give Mum a Blackberry Nip Liqueur to warm her up. This is the second one I've bought and I will plant it in a sunnier place than the first.
I used to drink wine, but an allergic reaction one Christmas Day totally put me off it for a while. I did try a product that was new to me in the local supermarket recently which was wine with the alcohol removed. It was absolutely horrible, but I'm not sure whether that was because it didn't have alcohol, or whether I wouldn't have liked it anyway.
There used to be a drink here called Claytons which was billed as "The drink you have when you're not having a drink." According to my parents it was horrible and it didn't last long on the market.