Free dump weekend success shows city is cyclone prepared
Date published: 30 October 2017
Townsville residents have embraced the get ready for cyclones message, flocking to Townsville City Council landfill sites for the three-day free dump weekend.
Townsville Mayor and chair of the Local Disaster Management Group, Cr Jenny Hill said almost 7000 ute and trailer loads of garden waste and rubbish came through the gates between Friday and Sunday.
“On Sunday, I spent time at our transfer station and saw first-hand that operations were running smoothly,” Cr Hill said.
“In total 1400 tonnes of material were brought to the Council’s landfill sites at Stuart, Harvey Range, Magnetic Island, Toomulla, Jensen and Bluewater over the three days.
“That’s more than a thousand tonnes of material that will not become potential missiles in the event of a major cyclone hitting Townsville this season.”
Cr Hill said prevention, preparation and education were the keys to surviving natural disasters and speeding up recovery afterwards.
“The great response to the free dump weekend, and this year’s Cyclone Sunday event, shows residents are listening and taking the appropriate actions to keep their homes and families safe this cyclone season,” she said.
Cr Hill said there was still time to get on board with the Cyclone Ready Streets initiative and earn vouchers to host a cyclone clean up barbeque for your family or neighbourhood.
“This is a fun way to encourage everyone to get together to clean out their yards, check roofs and gutters and prepare your household emergency plan and kits,” Cr Hill said.
“To earn your barbeque pack, simply register before 17 November at cyclonereadystreets.com.au, and send three photos of your efforts.
“While you’re online, I’m encouraging everyone to visit the new Emergency Management Dashboard at disaster.townsville.qld.gov.au/.
“This is a one-stop web site for critical information on road and weather conditions, power outages, emergency contacts, evacuation centres and much more.
“Regardless of what device you are using, make sure to bookmark and favourite the site and share the link with your friends, neighbours and family members.”
