Latest news with #PortMacquarie
ABC News
3 days ago
- Business
- ABC News
Flood Cleanup
BLAKE: Still on the Hastings River, still in major flood, I'll give you a look around. The debris has slowed down, but the things I've been seeing are really devastating. For the last two weeks, Blake has been recording what he's seen around his hometown, Port Macquarie in New South Wales. BLAKE: Major floods Just in comparison, where I'm standing is the 2021 flood. This is where it got up to, let me take you down to where it is right now. Yep, floods aren't new to this part of this world. But the recent disaster that hit the hunter regions and the mid-north coast was devastating. Noah here lives in Taree, where nearly half the homes were underwater last week. JONATHAN, NOAH'S DAD: Got everyone out through the bedroom window and to the boat and made my way to the next-door neighbour and picked her up. She lives there by herself, and she was almost chest-deep in water. Floodwater doesn't just make things wet, it's full of everything it picks up along the way, including dirt, sewage and chemicals. And it causes mold to grow, meaning a lot of things can't be salvaged even when they dry out. BLAKE: So, we had to put some fridges away, like chuck fridges away because they all got broken and stuff. We've lost heaps of piles of my kayaks. Just basic stuff we've lost, but still a lot. And it's not just homes that have been affected. The floods have hit business, and farms. SAM, FARMER: No matter what we could have done, no matter how well we prepared, no one could have prepared for this. This land is flat, which means there's nowhere for the water to flow naturally. And with the soil already soaked, it sits around and kills grass. JAMES, FARMER: Everything's covered in silt and a lot of the pasture we've sown for the autumn, winter and spring is all dead, so we're gonna have no food at all. Experts say the damage from these floods will be huge. Just repairing the roads alone is expected to cost around 2.5 billion dollars. Some people will be relying on insurance to help them rebuild. But as events like this become more frequent, insurance is becoming more expensive and not everyone can get it. Last week the Prime Minister, Anthony Albanese, came to Taree to talk to locals. ANTHONY ALBANESE, AUSTRALIAN PM: We are activating the Australian government disaster recovery payment, in nine government areas. Right now, everyone is working together to clean up the damage. 70 members of the Australian Defence force have come to help out, along with more than 2,000 SES volunteers from around the country. BLAKE: Moving a lot of mud. Cleaning up, getting new furniture in, cleaning everything, cleaning all the grass off because it was a big layer of mud. Getting his sand in cleaning boats. So now we've done all that and the volunteers have helped. So, now we're back up and running. Many people aren't exactly sure what the next few weeks, months or even years of their life will look like, but they're trying to stay positive. SAM: Seeing our cows still there, it gives us hope. BLAKE: There's nothing we could do about it, but right now, we're on the other side, which is a better thing.
ABC News
6 days ago
- Business
- ABC News
Why our coffee can cost more on a weekend than during the week
Have you ever looked at your cafe bill on a weekend and wondered why your coffee is more expensive than it was midweek? Many of us will have paid Sunday and public holiday surcharges before, but they're becoming more common on your average weekend. Extra charges can be frustrating — especially if there's no clear explanation around them or the service doesn't stack up. We asked industry experts why businesses are using surcharges more frequently, and how they are calculated. Under consumer law, businesses are allowed to impose a surcharge if they're facing elevated costs on that particular day. Sean Edwards, managing director of Cafe Culture Magazine, points out that costs have gone up in many areas of the hospitality sector. "We've seen everything go up, from wage costs to superannuation to workers compensation, which adds … nearly 20 to 30 per cent on top of the payroll," says Mr Edwards, based at Port Macquarie/Birpai land on the New South Wales Mid-North Coast. "Then things like electricity have gone up, [wholesale] coffee's tripled in price over the last 12 months. Chris Tate is the operations manager of a coffee-roasting business in North Ryde, New South Wales, on the traditional lands of the Wallumedegal people. He says wages often equate to 35 to 40 per cent of total costs and those costs spike on weekends due to penalty rates. "The surcharge is how venues can honour those award wages without cutting hours, lowering quality, or closing on weekends," he says. "It's a direct link between customers wanting a weekend coffee and making sure the person behind the machine is paid properly." Weekend surcharges aren't about boosting profits, they're helping cafes survive, Mr Tate says. "There's no strict percentage cap on weekend surcharges," he explains, but customers shouldn't be surprised when they go to pay. He adds that charging fairly and communicating that to customers is key. While state or territory regulations on the way surcharges must be displayed may differ slightly, under Australian Consumer Law, businesses must: That means displaying it on printed menus, digital ordering pages, or signage and making sure it's easy to read. "Anything misleading could breach ACCC (Australian Competition and Consumer Commission) guidelines," says Mr Tate, "so clarity is key". "Most customers are understanding when you communicate openly and respectfully." Mr Edwards believes it would be rare that a cafe is price gouging. "I think at the moment everyone's in a tight spot," he says. "There's a lot of real costs, and I think people have just got to relate it back to their own lifestyle and their own house and the cost they're feeling as well. Mr Tate says the surcharge only works when it's paired with a great experience. "If a customer is paying a little more … they should get more in return such as better service, delicious coffee, and a warm, welcoming atmosphere." Customers who believe they've been hit with undisclosed surcharges can make a complaint with their local fair trading or consumer affairs agency.
Free Malaysia Today
26-05-2025
- Climate
- Free Malaysia Today
Record floods devastate eastern Australia
Rescue personnel assist a resident stranded in flooded waters at her home in Port Macquarie, north of Sydney. (AP pic) MAITLAND : Record floods cut a destructive path through eastern Australia on Friday, caking houses in silt, washing out roads and separating 50,000 people from help. Four bodies have been pulled from vast tides of floodwater engulfing parts of northern New South Wales, a fertile region of rivers and valleys some 400km up the coast from Sydney. Salvage crews were preparing to embark on a major clean-up operation as waters started receding Friday morning, surveying the damage from half a year's worth of rain dumped in just three days. 'Our CBD was inundated, so many businesses have had water through and it's going to be a massive cleanup,' said Kinne Ring, mayor of the flood-stricken farming town of Kempsey, referring to its central business district. 'Houses have been inundated,' she told national broadcaster ABC. 'There's water coming through the bottom of houses, it's really awful to see and the water is going to take a bit of time to recede.' State Emergency Service boss Dallas Burnes said more than 2,000 workers had been deployed to the disaster zone. 'A real focus for us at the moment will be resupplying the isolated communities,' he said, adding that 50,000 people were still stranded by the floods. Burnes said rescue crews had plucked more than 600 people to safety since the floods started rising earlier this week. Some people clambered atop cars, houses and highway bridges before helicopters winched them away. The storms have dumped more than six months' worth of rain over just three days, the government weather bureau has said, smashing flood-height records in some areas. 'We are seeing levels in local tributaries, creeks and rivers that we haven't seen since 1920,' state premier Chris Minns told reporters on Thursday. 'Many people will have never seen this level of inundation or flooding in their communities.' In the town of Taree, business owner Jeremy Thornton said the 'gut-wrenching' flood was among the worst he had seen. 'It is pretty tough, we've had a few moments but you have to suck it up and push on,' he told AFP on Thursday. 'We are reliving it every second – hearing the rain, hearing the helicopters, hearing the siren.' Locals spotted dead cows washing up on beaches after swollen rivers swept them from their pastures inland. The government has declared a natural disaster, unlocking greater resources for affected areas. From the arid outback to the tropical coast, swaths of Australia have recently been pummelled by wild weather. The oceans surrounding Australia have been 'abnormally warm' in recent months, according to Australia's government weather bureau. Warmer seas evaporate more moisture into the atmosphere, which can eventually lead to more intense rains. Although difficult to link to specific disasters, climate change is already fuelling more extreme weather patterns, scientists warn. Flood modelling expert Mahdi Sedighkia said this week's emergency offered 'compelling evidence' of how climate change could affect regional weather patterns.
ABC News
25-05-2025
- Climate
- ABC News
Port Macquarie North Shore residents emerge from flood isolation
Having lived in Port Macquarie's North Shore for more than 40 years, Carla McKern knows isolation well. During times of flood though, that isolation goes to a new level. The close-knit North Shore community, on the northern side of the Hastings River, is accessed from Port Macquarie by two car ferries. Both had been out of action since Wednesday, during widespread flooding in the region. "A lot of people have been without food for days. They're just eating whatever dry goods are in their pantry," Ms McKern said. Ms McKern was overcome with emotion and broke down in tears as she described the generosity of the community in the past week. "We all just go from house to house and help each other out and just clean up the best we can," she said. "We don't know the volunteers that come over here but we are truly grateful. "It's a lot of work to do yet but we'll get there." The State Emergency Service gave residents a one-hour warning that one more ferry service would make the trip before it was stopped last Wednesday. Ms McKern wanted more information to be provided earlier. "With all the rain that we've had and with the amount of water we had in the catchment, I think that they could've done a bit better," she said. "People that weren't home couldn't come home and do things." More than 200 homes on the North Shore, including Ms McKern's, were damaged by floodwater. Anne-Melissie Whelan, who moved to Port Macquarie from Melbourne last year, said the water filled half of her home's downstairs area. Ms Whelan said she knew the flood risk in the region before her family moved. "What we didn't know was how bad the drainage was," she said. "Before the river even came up to us, we were already two days deep in water, which made it really bad. We need better drainage." Ms Whelan said she sheltered her young children from the reality of what was happening. "We were thinking, 'OK, we've got children, we can't be climbing on top of roofs. Do we need to be rescued out?'" The North Shore did not receive an evacuation order, but was under an initial "watch and act" emergency warning. Residents were later told to "shelter now". "I'm really grateful to live here still." Joel Heise, his partner and two young kids are also new to the community, having only moved to the North Shore six weeks ago. "Most floods come and go really quick, whereas this stuck around," he said. "It surprised all of us really." Mr Heise said his property had fared OK but it was chaos entertaining two "stir crazy" toddlers at home. "We bought a heap of stuff just before we knew we were going to get stuck inside, but interestingly enough, [having] no power is the hardest thing," he said. Jedd Clarke was a part of the contingent of volunteers who travelled to the isolated community. "We spent the morning cleaning out the lower part of their houses, [removing] the debris and the wreck from the flood," he said. Mr Clarke said tradespeople were assisting on Sunday to get power restored to the community. "They've got plumbers and electricians working over there to give people water and get power going again," he said. Local Rural Fire Service Captain Kingsley Seare said it was "surreal" to see his community process the flood event. "This [the clean-up] is when the hard work happens and this is when the heartache happens," he said. "I've been asking my crews to go around and to not only help out, but to talk to them and look them in the eye and see how they're feeling. The ferry which travels between North Shore and the township of Port Macquarie started servicing the community again on Sunday afternoon, five days after services were halted. Among those joining volunteers at North Shore at the weekend were Port Macquarie MP Robert Dwyer, Cowper MP Pat Conaghan and New South Wales Opposition Leader Mark Speakman. "There's still a rescue operation going on in parts of the Mid North Coast," Mr Speakman said. "Homes and businesses need to be looked after. "We have to get the relief out as quickly as possible."
ABC News
24-05-2025
- Climate
- ABC News
Port Macquire locals begin cleaning up after floods
Some locals living near the river in Port Macquarie take advantage of clear skies to begin cleaning, while others are in temporary accommodation.
