Graziers are counting the cost of huge stock losses after the flood rain
When monsoonal rains settled over his Julia Creek properties, Anthony Anderson thought he could put the hard years of drought behind him. But it was just the beginning of more heartache.
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GRAZIER Anthony Anderson had 4500 head of cattle 10 days ago and, as the monsoonal trough settled across Queensland’s northwest, was preparing to put the hard years of drought behind him.
Today he can’t account for 1600 head of his cattle and expects the massive flooding event of the past week will eventually claim 50 per cent of his herd.
On Tuesday he was still shooting stricken cattle and in the days ahead expects to find more pockets of dead animals scattered across his family’s four properties, while other weakened cattle will succumb to pneumonia.
“It was a bit like putting a high pressure hose on them for three days in 60km winds,’’ he said yesterday as he tried to assess the full extent of damage on the family property, Eddington Droughtmaster Stud, 20 minutes drive out of Julia Creek.
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The 40-year-old grazier, the grandson of a drover with a family tradition steeped in the Queensland cattle industry, said so much of the heartache felt by hundreds of grazing families across the region lay in the initial promise of the rain.
Eddington had recorded just over 100mm of rain in 2018 and falls of 120m or so overnight at the start of the month could have been absorbed by the country and easily weathered by the cattle.
The heavy rains, even into early last week, were setting graziers up for a profitable year in which they could finally take advantage of good cattle prices.
“We were just getting ready to put a big dent in debt this year,’’ Mr Anderson said.
Instead he and wife Rachel watched as their homestead became an island in an inland sea.
Silt washed away from the claypan paddocks and choked the life out of the surrounding ground while 160 kilometres of fencing was destroyed by flood waters.
Cloncurry Mayor Greg Campbell said the weather event had unquestionably brought the region to its knees as up to 150 defence personnel, co-ordinated by Brigadier Steve Jobson, now based out of Julia Creek, helped fly in fuel and fodder.
But both he and the Mayor of neighbouring McKinlay Shire, Belinda Murphy, said the people have a powerfully resilient spirit.
Cr Murphy said the gut wrenching scenes of dead livestock and wildlife on the Flinders Highway outside Julia Creek are confronting.
“But the sodden soil will transform into green landscape — mother nature’s beauty will be on show after horrible cruelty.’’
Councils across the region are begging Australians not to turn their back on the west in the coming winter months, urging grey nomads and all travellers to see the region at its best.
“In coming months flood ravaged communities are going to need the tourist dollar more than ever after the monsoon rains washed away hundreds of millions of dollars from the cattle industry,’’ Cr Murphy said.
“Please don’t bypass our towns.’’
Originally published as Graziers are counting the cost of huge stock losses after the flood rain