Hervey Bay Gossip

The wild weather of last week has resulted in some significant inflow into Lenthalls Dam and that has to be good news for us here in Hervey Bay.

 It’s now reported to be at least 77% full and you can see some great photos of those water levels here

Here on the east coast of Australia we’ve just experienced our second lunar eclipse of the year. For those who weren’t able to get out and see it the Hervey Bay Gossip humbly offers these photos shot from our backyard in Kawungan.

For the hour or so leading up to the time the eclipse began there was quite a bit of cloud around and at times it looked as though the clouds were going to get in the way of the spectacle.

Fortunately by the time the eclipse began the amount of cloud around the moon had begun to diminish. When this photo was taken the eclipse was well under way and the cloud had all but gone.

This final photo was taken when the Earth’s shadow had all but covered the Moon. The eerie red tinge that so many had hoped to see was definitely there.

With more and more people here in Hervey Bay opting to install water tanks it’s important to be aware that water tanks are not maintenance free.

With backyard rainwater tanks filling up in the past week, householders are being urged to keep them safe and mosquito free.

Health Minister Stephen Robertson said rain water tanks could become big targets for mosquito breeding without decent rainfalls this Spring, particularly if they are older models.

“Householders who are paid State Government rebates on rain water tanks, grey water systems and other water-efficient products are now receiving a new easy guide to keeping their tanks safe,” Mr Robertson said.

“Over 6000 people already have received, A Guide to keeping your tank safe, which has been produced by Queensland Health.

“If Queensland has a dry end to the year mozzies will find it hard to breed in favourite backyard places like empty flower pots, tyres or jars that collect water.

“Rainwater tanks could be a good breeding source especially if they don’t have insect-proof screens in good condition.”

(more…)

After the storm here in Hervey Bay I doubt that there are many of us who will every take the weather for granted again. While the weather on the Sunshine Coast had been bad all day here in Hervey Bay it had stayed relatively calm but that changed in just one or two minutes.

Within moments of the wind springing up power lines and trees began to go down. The Esplanade at Torquay was blocked when a big tree fell across the road near Gringo’s, branches and trees large and small came down right across town, large signs were blown over and live power lines fell on Boat Harbour Drive.

Some areas of town were blacked out for four or five hours and downed trees and branches can still be seen in many parts of town.

While many trees were uprooted - as was to be expected due to the drought - many others were simply broken off some distance up the trunk.

This is all that’s left of the tree outside the Torquay Post Office and even the shelter afforded by the buildings didn’t save this one. Further along The Esplanade around Scarness trees with much thicker trunks fared not better.

While many damaged trees have no been cut up so that they can be removed on Monday there are still plenty of fallen limbs and trees along the bike path and around the Botanical Gardens too.

Some parts of town seemed to be harder hit than others and while there was plenty of leaf litter on the ground around the Pier precinct in Urangan there was little else to show that the storm had hit there.

Perhaps the most spectacular damage that we’ve been able to locate was at the new toilet block being built on The Esplanade between Scarness and Torquay. Fortunately the building had still to be commissioned at the time the storm hit.

While there has undoubtedly been plenty of damage around Hervey Bay fortunately it has been relatively minor and there is no doubt that the rain that came with the winds was definitely needed.

Here is the perfect gift for your Dad this Father’s Day. He’ll definitely stand out in the crowd when he wears a t-shirt from Australian Native.

Whether you’re Dad’s into fishing, hobbies like model trains or he just likes to have a few quiet beers with his mates there’s a tshirt to suite him at Australian Native T-Shirts and Gifts.