‘Untouchables’ in dangerous new trend plaguing embattled CBD
Juvenile pyromaniacs playing dangerous games with kerosene-based firelighters in the Cairns CBD is the latest scourge facing business owners in city centre under siege.
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JUVENILE pyromaniacs playing dangerous games with kerosene-based firelighters in the Cairns CBD is the latest scourge facing business owners in a city centre under siege.
Last week reports emerged of children allegedly stealing fire lighters, commonly used by campers, and igniting the small cubes in commercial skip bins and on the street.
And children as young as nine-years-old are alleged to have also thrown flaming projectiles through shop doorways.
Adventure Cairns and Beyond store owner Erryn ‘Ezzy’ Wells said at the height of the Canberra and South Australian school holidays the emerging trend was a disturbing reality for families enjoying a tropical getaway.
“Something has to be done,” she said.
“We are getting smashed with school holiday people, the tourists in the shop are saying they are scared. The cops can’t do anything, Woolies can’t stop them stealing.
“They are the untouchables”.
City safe security guards confirmed the igniting of firelighters was an emerging issue in the CBD.
And Acting Inspector Kyell Palmer said police were aware and investigating reports but indicated a core group was responsible.
“At this time, there are no reports to suggest this type of behaviour is widespread with only a small number of perpetrators being identified,” he said.
The troubled Cairns city centre has been the focus of recent debate in an ongoing discussion about strategies to solve social problems caused by drunks, homeless itinerants and unaccompanied youth regularly stealing, chroming and committing violent crime. Strategies have included the trial of “wet zones” aimed at containing alcohol dependent rough sleepers and community-run cafes providing jobs for young offenders.
Bearing the brunt of public frustration police have argued officers were limited in what they could achieve and were ultimately bound by the law.
“The Human Rights Act applies to every aspect of policing,” Acting Senior Sergeant Simon Laverty said at a recent crime summit.
A reality Lake St businesswomen Ms Wells said youths were taking advantage of.
“I am on the phone to coppers and (the kids) said, ‘we don’t give a f**k they can’t stop us’,” she said.
“Something has to happen now. We are talking about fires, this is serious, this is arson.
“For the love of our community, we do not need aerosol cans and fire starters should be sold behind the counter like cigarettes.”
A bold Cairns Regional Council CBD safety plan announced last month aimed to target a problem cohort of about 130 rough sleepers known to be responsible for about 46 per cent of city disturbances in a desperate bid to rein in skyrocketing City Safe complaints that jumped from 12 in 2017 to 233 in 2021.
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