Jurien Bay residents afraid of what could happen next with frequent Telstra outages
He said the blaze had first been extinguished by firefighters earlier in the evening, but after midnight his wife saw it had reignited.
"She screamed out to me that the shed was on fire again. As I've gone out the backyard, there was just a red glow," Mr Cockburn said.
Mr Cockburn said he tried to call triple-0 four times in vain.
"[The call] would go through to the call centre and after about five or six seconds it would just drop out."
He said he had the same issues when trying to make a call to a friend who "made the assumption" the structure had reignited.
Firefighters arrived about an hour later.
Mr Cockburn said he and the elderly property owner used hoses to try to keep the flames from spreading to a nearby shed which held batteries and fuel.
"There was a good chance that would have exploded," he said.
Firefighters eventually stopped the blaze but the shed was destroyed and there was significant damage to his neighbour's house.
Mr Cockburn said the poor mobile coverage caused a dangerous delay and the service was still unacceptable weeks later.
He is one of many residents of Jurien Bay, about 200 kilometres north of Perth, who say phone services are so unreliable they could be life threatening.
Telstra initially told the ABC there was only one recent fault, in June, but after more questions they said further investigations found an "intermittent fault" which "reduced mobile performance for some customers".
"We're sorry for the stress this has caused. It's a complex fault and we're working with our software vendor and technicians to identify the root cause of the issue as a matter of urgency," a spokesperson said.
Dandaragan shire president Tony O'Gorman said coverage issues had been happening for about three months.
"It's almost impossible to make a phone call in and around Jurien Bay without the phone dropping out," he said.
The council had been lobbying Telstra on behalf of residents, he added.
"But they're paying as much attention to us [the council] as they do any other citizen, which is just about zero."
Mr O'Gorman encouraged locals to lodge a complaint with Telstra and escalate it with the telecommunications ombudsman.
Shire of Dandaragan emergency services coordinator Will Miller said every minute in an emergency mattered, and there had been multiple incidents in which telco issues had occurred.
"As soon as you've got life and property involved, it's amazing how much we do rely on our telephone networks these days," Mr Miller said.
He said response teams and volunteers were encouraged to sign up with multiple telco providers in the hopes at least one would provide a signal in an emergency.
Mr Miller said the backup plan added extra costs but was a good placeholder until there was a long-term fix.
"We could be waiting for solutions for quite some time," he said.
Jurien Bay's Community Resource Centre recorded at least 25 people who had been affected by unreliable mobile coverage.
"But we know through social media there's lots more people affected by it," manager Sue Campbell said.
The lack of coverage affected daily life, she said, with many government and banking services using two-factor authentication which required a phone call or text to work.
Ms Campbell said in one situation a client had applied for an income support payment but could not do the necessary phone interview.
"The day of the interview he was sitting waiting for the call and it never arrived," she said.
The same issue happened again twice, leaving the client without an income for about six weeks, Ms Campbell said.
"It's very distressing for them. It badly affects their mental health," she said.
Ms Campbell said the centre's staff were planning on lobbying local MP Shane Love over the issue and also encouraged people to lodge a complaint with the telecommunications ombudsman.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
ABC News
2 hours ago
- ABC News
Homelessness doesn't look like people sleeping on park benches in the Pilbara
When Tess Hulshoff was trying to leave a domestic violence situation, she was afraid homelessness would send her back under the roof of her abusive former partner. "I was terrified. I didn't know what to do," Ms Hulshoff said. "I didn't want to be a burden on my friends. I had two young kids and I was a mess." The Pilbara mother and photographer was kicked out of her home, supplied by her former partner's employer, after telling her partner she was leaving the relationship. "I had done some counselling and the [counsellor] had identified that I was in a situation of DV and coercive control," she said. If you need help immediately call emergency services on triple-0 Ms Hulshoff's situation is one experts say is increasingly common in the Pilbara, which recorded homelessness rates five times the state average during the last census. And research released as part of National Homelessness Week revealed a concerning lack of understanding of homelessness. Most people understand homelessness as "primary homelessness" — sometimes called "sleeping rough" or "rooflessness". But researchers say "red dust homelessness", the term for the situation Ms Hulshoff experienced, is accounting for a growing number of cases. In the mining and gas-dominated Pilbara, where company-supplied housing is often the norm for families, separation and divorce can cause instability. "If you're not employed by that company, or even if you are, then there are very few housing options for you if you want to separate," said Curtin University professor of social work Donna Chung. "There is really limited accommodation, particularly if people are living in houses in small communities. "So if you separate or you are evicted from your accommodation, then there's actually very little option for you." In Ms Hulshoff's case, it was a combination of a close friend and luck that prevented her and her children from sleeping in her car or returning to the prospect of more violence at home. "I was driving out of my driveway asking [a friend] if we — myself and two kids — could come to her house and stay," Ms Hulshoff said. She stayed with her friend for a week before a real estate company expedited a rental home for her — something she said was a stroke of luck. "It was by chance that one of the real estate agents was a past client of mine and she advocated for me," she said. Professor Chung said this "secondary" homelessness was common in regional WA. "There's a group of people who are almost always at risk of homelessness," she said. "They might have moved into a friend's place, or a family member's place, in crisis and then stayed there because they haven't been able to move out." The Salvation Army's Danielle Black, who coordinates the charity's Doorways program in Karratha, said the region's homelessness was hidden. "The amount of times that I've heard the comment, 'But we don't have homelessness in the Pilbara.' We do," she said. "The last family that we worked with had 18 [people] in a three-bedroom house. Ms Black said there were added layers of complexity for women and Aboriginal people. She said affording stable accommodation in an area with acute housing challenges was a key issue. "In relationship breakdowns, particularly when there's family and domestic violence, you know you need to act quite quickly." Despite the challenges, Ms Black said the region had some "fantastic" services, including the expansion of the women's refuge in Karratha late last year. The WA government recently reaffirmed a $5.8 billion commitment to address housing and homelessness across the state. A state government spokesperson said it had an election commitment to develop a new Safe at Home service in Karratha and had recently funded a similar service in Port Hedland. The government also funds four homelessness services in the Pilbara region and provides recurrent funding for four family and domestic violence refuges in Port Hedland, Newman, Karratha and Roebourne.
ABC News
3 hours ago
- ABC News
Rooming houses frustrate some Victorians who want more say on developments
Henry Crawford loves the sense of community in his residential Wodonga street, which hosts a collection of modern units alongside older, red brick and weatherboard homes. But there is a new type of development on the block. A rooming house — where four or more people can live in up to nine rented rooms — was built on the street earlier this year. And Mr Crawford said residents were worried another unit in the street would be converted into a rooming house. "There is a need for some of this accommodation, but we just think it shouldn't be concentrated in one area," he said. Mr Crawford is among hundreds of regional residents petitioning for ratepayers and councils to have a greater say around the development, limitations and density of rooming houses. The rooming house development in Wodonga was built after Wodonga Council last year refused a planning permit for a five-dwelling, five-lot subdivision on the site due to concerns about street amenity, private open space objectives, and car parking requirements. In Victoria, rooming houses can be built in a range of development zones without a permit if it does not exceed nine bedrooms and 12 residents. The total floor area of all buildings on the land must not exceed 300 square metres, excluding outbuildings, and bedrooms can only be accessed from within the building. There are also requirements for garden areas and shared facilities. Rooming house operators must apply for and be granted a licence before they can start operating. Rooming houses differ from a share house or rental property because individual residents usually have separate agreements with the rooming house operator to rent a room. Different rules around rent increases, repairs, minimum standards, inspections, and notices to vacate also apply. There are more than 1,700 rooming houses registered with Consumer Affairs Victoria. Peter Mortimer lives in a residential court in the Gippsland town of Churchill, where there are three rooming houses within 50 metres of each other. "I am absolutely gutted that you can't have any say whatsoever," he said. Mr Mortimer said he had concerns about the large number of potential residents and increased traffic, as the road was narrow, and about its impact on the quiet nature of the street. He has complained to the local council and Consumer Affairs Victoria. Victorian-based developer Stone Horizon focuses exclusively on designing, building and managing rooming houses in the state, and plans to build around 15 this year alone. Managing director Henry Vila said the company worked mainly with "mum and dad investors", and had strong tenancy demand from young professionals and older divorced or widowed women. He said the company chose Victoria because the state offered unique legislation and lacked individual local government interference, which made delivering up to nine rentable rooms easier and allowed for better quality dwellings. "One of the great things about the way we do these properties in Victoria in particular is that we have a very consistent, very stringent set of rules … at the state level," Mr Vila said. "No matter where in Victoria we want to do these properties, the rules are the same, and those rules have evolved." Mr Vila said he was aware of community concerns. He argued there was a need to remove rooming house stigma, which he believed had partly been driven by previous unscrupulous developers providing poor-quality accommodation and unreasonably high tenant numbers. "I think we are going to continue evolving rooming houses to provide a higher and higher quality product as people get more and more used to living in small spaces," Mr Vila said. The Victorian government said appropriate and affordable rooming houses played an important role in improving social inclusion, mobility, and access to jobs for vulnerable residents. Victorian councils have raised concerns about the planning framework for rooming houses, particularly in relation to their concentration in certain areas and the limitations of their planning powers. The Municipal Association of Victoria (MAV) supports reforms that would introduce a requirement for planning approval for rooming houses located within 200 metres of an existing facility, along with public consultation. "This would enable a more transparent and coordinated approach to integrating rooming houses into communities, while maintaining appropriate safeguards," MAV president Jennifer Anderson said. Rooming houses must be registered with local councils, and councils can inspect the premises to ensure health and wellbeing compliance.
SBS Australia
5 hours ago
- SBS Australia
#92 Asking for donations (Med)
spk_0 Well, if you ask me, learning English helps me to help others. spk_1 SPS acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country and their connections and continuous care for the skies, lands and waterways throughout Australia. Josipa Hi, my name is Josipa. Josipa And I made a promise to my friend that I'd help her raise money for a charity that supports homeless families. Josipa A charity is a group that helps people in need. Josipa So I signed up to do a charity run of 10 kilometres because I really believe in what this charity does. A charity run is organized by a charity to raise money. People who take part in the run ask their friends and family to give money to the charity because they're taking part in it. Josipa And are likely to be very exhausted by the experience and even feel some pain. It's like, I'm suffering for this charity, so please give money to them. Josipa Now, I am not a runner. I'm more of a sit down and read a book kind of person. So I will be exhausted, and my feet, my feet are likely to hurt. Josipa But that's not the part I'm worried about. Josipa The hard part, asking people for money. Like, how do you even say it? Hey, would you like to give me money? Nope. That feels weird, too direct, too uncomfortable. It is difficult to ask people to donate. That is, to give something like money, clothes, food, or time to help others. So I started thinking. Josipa There must be a better way to ask, a more polite way, a more English way, and there is. Josipa Allan and Claire showed me in this dialogue that there are some polite and friendly ways to ask for a donation without sounding pushy or awkward. A donation is whatever you give to a charity. You don't get anything for it. You give because you want to help. Now let's listen to Alan and Claire at work. Allan Hey Claire, do you have a minute? Sure, what's up? I'm running a charity cake stall this Friday to raise money for a children's hospital. It's part of the community fundraiser I've joined. Would you be open to making a small donation? Claire Oh, that sounds lovely, Alan, but I've already donated to another charity appeal this week. Sorry. Allan Totally understand, no pressure at all. But if you've got a coin or two to spare, it'll go straight to a good cause. Allan Every bit counts and hey, I'll save you the best cupcake. Claire Alright, you got me. I can't say no to a cupcake. Josipa Alan is organizing a charity cake stall. That's when people bake cakes and muffins, sell them, and give the money to a charity. Josipa Alan is really altruistic. That means he helps others just to do something good, not to get anything back. Hmm. To be completely honest, I'm not sure I'm doing my charity because I'm altruistic. I want to help, yes, but the real reason is it makes me feel good about myself, and that's OK, right? Doing good and feeling good can go together. Josipa Now, let's do some good for our English and learn the phrases from the dialogue. Let's listen again to how Alan asked Claire for a donation. Allan I'm running a charity cake stall this Friday to raise money for a children's hospital. It's part of a community fundraiser I've joined. Allan Would you be open to making a small donation Josipa Before asking for money, Alan explained what the fundraiser was for by saying, Allan I'm running a charity cake stall this Friday to raise money for a children's hospital. Josipa If you are running something, it means you're organizing it, looking after it, or making sure it happens. Josipa Alan is running a charity cake stall, but you can run other things too. For example, if you are running a business, that means you are managing or owning it. Josipa Allan then said, Allan It's part of a community fundraiser I've joined. Josipa A fundraiser is an event or activity that helps collect money to help others, and the community fundraiser is when people in a neighbourhood, school, or local group work together to raise money for something important. Josipa After saying what the money is for, the reason for the fundraiser. Josipa Alan asked Claire. Allan Would you be open to making a small donation? Josipa This is a polite way not to direct or pushy, to ask someone if they're willing to give a little money to help. Would you be open to? It's the same as saying, are you OK with, or would you say yes to? Josipa And making a small donation means giving a small amount to help. Josipa For example, I often make a small donation by giving away clothes that I don't need. I hope that my donations make life a little easier for someone in need. Josipa Now let's hear a few more ways in which we can ask for donations. Claire I've got a little fundraiser going. Any chance you'd like to help? Allan Would you be happy to support this cause? Josipa Any help you can give would mean a lot. Josipa Claire initially said she couldn't donate to Alan's charity, she said. Claire I've already donated to another charity appeal this week. Sorry! Josipa A charity appeal is when a charity asks people to give money or help. They may ask for people's donation in a letter, online, on TV, on the radio, or like Alan did in person. Josipa It's called an appeal because the charity is asking for support. Josipa Allan then said, Allan Totally understand. No pressure at all. But if you've got a coin or two to spare, it'll go straight to a good cause. Every bit counts, and hey, I'll save you the best cupcake. Josipa Notice how Alan showed that he understood Claire's response, but then he tried one more time. Allan But if you've got a coin or two to spare, it'll go straight to a good cause. Josipa That's another good phrase we could use when asking for donations. When we ask someone for a coin or two, we are asking for a small amount of money. We also often use the phrase a gold coin donation. Josipa This means that you don't have to give a large amount like a $5 or $10 note. Josipa And to spare means extra. So if you have some money to spare, that means that you can give, donate a little without causing any problems. Allan said the money he is raising will go straight to a good cause. Josipa A good cause is a project or group that helps people or animals who need support, like a charity or community group. For me, running 10 kilometres will be hard, but, but I believe it will be worth it to support a good cause. Alan also said. Allan Every bit counts. Josipa This means that even a small amount is helpful. Josipa You could also say, Claire A little help goes a long way. Josipa Or if you want to sound more formal, you could say. Allan We appreciate any support you can give. Josipa You know what? After hearing all the great examples Allan and Claire shared in this episode, I feel ready to help my friend make a difference. So why don't you listen to their dialogue one more time while I make some phone calls to ask for donations for my friend's charity appeal. Allan Hey Claire, do you have a minute? Sure, what's up? I'm running a charity cake stall this Friday to raise money for a children's hospital. It's part of the community fundraiser I've joined. Would you be open to making a small donation? Claire Oh, that sounds lovely, Alan, but I've already donated to another charity appeal this week. Sorry. Allan Totally understand, no pressure at all. But if you've got a coin or two to spare, it'll go straight to a good cause. Allan Every bit counts and hey, I'll save you the best cupcake. Claire Alright, you got me. I can't say no to a cupcake. Josipa Hello. We're from SBS. Learn English. I'm. So I got up early, got in my car, and now I'm at Immigrant Women's Speak Out organization in a company of Sunila Kotwal, who is executive officer and works with other women who dedicate all their time to help other women. Josipa Hello, Sunila, how are you? Sunila I'm good, thank you. Josipa Why are your services so important for women who need help? Sunila OK. Immigrant Women Speak Out Association of New South Wales, that's a proper name, has been working to support women experiencing domestic family and sexual violence. Our services exist because we are a specialized service for migrant and refugee women. Sunila Unfortunately, mainstream services don't always work for migrant women, especially for those on temporary visas. Sunila Many of the women who come to us have never asked for help before. Some didn't even know that they could. Sunila They've come from places where services are limited and women are silent. So when they come through our doors, we know that it has taken them a lot to get there. Josipa And what kind of help do you give to women who are leaving family violence or have no safe place to live? Sunila Years ago when women visiting us to seek support, they begged to sleep at our office just to stay safe. That's when we knew that we had to do more. So we opened our own crisis accommodation in 2016, a shelter specifically for migrant women on temporary visas. Sunila We now run 2 crisis accommodations, accommodating 12 single women at any time. Sunila Each woman can stay for up to 6 months while we support them through every step of rebuilding their lives. We provide culturally appropriate support from a caseworker, a counselor. Sunila We provide them groceries, food vouchers, transport cards, and emotional support. We run programs to improve their mental and physical health, such as self-care, gardening, self-defense, and more. Sunila We help women find jobs, help them write resumes, prepare for interviews, and accompany them to the interviews. Sunila We also offer practical skills building in areas like baking, sewing, and alteration to help women earn an income, regardless of their English level. Josipa You also help them with English, don't you? Sunila We do. We run English conversation classes and we also run basic computer classes where we get them email addresses and help them understand what the government emails are asking from them. Can you tell us how can someone in a very practical, concrete way help your organization? What can we do? Sunila There are 2 key ways to support us financially and practically. Financial donations, both one time and ongoing, are essential to keep our services running. Sunila On the practical side, we welcome volunteers to help run our programs. That might mean teaching English, basic computer skills, helping in our garden, or helping us organize one of our 5 annual women's picnics. Josipa And if one wants to join you, try to become a volunteer in your organization where they can find information. Sunila We have a website All the information about the volunteers is available there. Josipa Thank you, Sunila for this interview. Josipa Let's now practice different ways we can ask for donations. Just repeat after Alan and Claire. Claire Would you be open to making a small donation? Allan We appreciate any support you can give. Claire Any help you can give would mean a lot. Allan If you've got a coin or two to spare, it'll go straight to a good cause. Josipa If you'd like to practice your speaking skills, and I really recommend it, listen to our bonus episode. It's short, fun, and great for speaking practice. Practicing out loud really helped me. It gave me confidence to speak to people in English. Josipa You can also check out our socials, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube for more tips and fun language learning videos. Just search for SBS Learn English. I'm Josipa. Thank you for learning English with me today. END OF TRANSCRIPT
