1
00:00:00,400 --> 00:00:02,760
Speaker 1: Hello, it's me Dave O'Neil. Clean's not here for this bit,

2
00:00:02,800 --> 00:00:04,560
Speaker 1: but that's okay because it was actually me that made

3
00:00:04,600 --> 00:00:08,479
Speaker 1: this new true crime well sort off podcast with Brad Oaks. Yes,

4
00:00:08,520 --> 00:00:11,360
Speaker 1: Brad gets mentioned a fair bit on somehow related. It's

5
00:00:11,400 --> 00:00:13,600
Speaker 1: called a Slippery Slope. You can listen here or search

6
00:00:13,640 --> 00:00:16,360
Speaker 1: for in your podcast app. It's a story of jealousy,

7
00:00:16,400 --> 00:00:20,080
Speaker 1: aspiration and international relations taking place mostly in Queensland's remote

8
00:00:20,079 --> 00:00:22,880
Speaker 1: north central town of Mount Isa. Got two of your

9
00:00:22,920 --> 00:00:26,720
Speaker 1: favorite things and selling for Slippery Slope Episode one. Hopefully

10
00:00:26,720 --> 00:00:29,159
Speaker 1: Glen will be listening and you can correct Brad on

11
00:00:29,240 --> 00:00:32,040
Speaker 1: all his factual errors like he likes to do to us.

12
00:00:32,360 --> 00:00:37,760
Speaker 1: Here we go Mount iSER, one of the most remote

13
00:00:37,800 --> 00:00:41,559
Speaker 1: places in Australia, nay the world, smack bang in the

14
00:00:41,600 --> 00:00:46,400
Speaker 1: middle of Queensland. They had it all pubs, cowboys, rodeo,

15
00:00:46,720 --> 00:00:50,800
Speaker 1: twenty four hour machas, a massive mind. But something was missing.

16
00:00:51,600 --> 00:00:54,000
Speaker 2: She said, I got to say they don't have real problems.

17
00:00:54,320 --> 00:00:58,120
Speaker 3: You got problems, And he said, what the fuck is

18
00:00:58,240 --> 00:01:02,520
Speaker 3: that some of us screaming wizzard, crocodile, lizard, crocodile.

19
00:01:02,080 --> 00:01:04,679
Speaker 4: And a water slide just made sense.

20
00:01:05,560 --> 00:01:07,440
Speaker 3: It was made in Turkey and we got a lot

21
00:01:07,480 --> 00:01:08,480
Speaker 3: of flak off that too.

22
00:01:08,680 --> 00:01:12,039
Speaker 2: There was a bit of an issue in the sus Canal, Like.

23
00:01:12,400 --> 00:01:14,720
Speaker 3: I thought everyone was having a crack.

24
00:01:14,840 --> 00:01:17,400
Speaker 4: They're delaying and on purpose and they're just trying to

25
00:01:17,400 --> 00:01:18,560
Speaker 4: get it in after the election.

26
00:01:18,920 --> 00:01:22,000
Speaker 5: Oh okay, of course this has happened to us in

27
00:01:22,000 --> 00:01:23,280
Speaker 5: Mount isa What else would happen?

28
00:01:24,600 --> 00:01:30,320
Speaker 6: Slippery Slope a true crime podcast about Mount iSER and

29
00:01:30,360 --> 00:01:36,880
Speaker 6: the Missing Water Slide with Dave O'Neill and Brad Oaks.

30
00:01:40,600 --> 00:01:43,120
Speaker 1: Well, Hello and welcome to a podcast. I'm Dave O'Neil.

31
00:01:43,400 --> 00:01:44,560
Speaker 7: Hi, I'm Brad Oaks.

32
00:01:46,560 --> 00:01:49,920
Speaker 1: Now, Brad, tell everyone how we came across the story

33
00:01:49,920 --> 00:01:52,440
Speaker 1: of Mount isa and the Missing water Slide.

34
00:01:52,920 --> 00:01:58,280
Speaker 8: Well, last year we were touring in northern Queensland. We

35
00:01:58,280 --> 00:02:01,280
Speaker 8: were in cans and then we flew to Mount Isaac.

36
00:02:01,800 --> 00:02:05,960
Speaker 8: We were picked up by a challenging person from the.

37
00:02:05,320 --> 00:02:07,960
Speaker 7: Mount Isaac Council, Erica Erica.

38
00:02:08,160 --> 00:02:11,200
Speaker 8: She drove us around, she showed us some very interesting

39
00:02:11,280 --> 00:02:17,960
Speaker 8: sites and then told us this wonderful tale.

40
00:02:19,120 --> 00:02:21,560
Speaker 1: Now you'd been to man iSER before, No, I'd never

41
00:02:21,600 --> 00:02:23,760
Speaker 1: been there. Yeah, and what was your first impression?

42
00:02:25,160 --> 00:02:29,680
Speaker 8: Is it in Australia? Yeah, it's it's a long while.

43
00:02:29,800 --> 00:02:31,840
Speaker 1: It's very isolated for people that don't know. It's in

44
00:02:31,840 --> 00:02:34,639
Speaker 1: the middle of Queensland. It's a huge mining town.

45
00:02:35,000 --> 00:02:38,680
Speaker 8: It's actually in Queensland, but it's closer to Darwin, yeah

46
00:02:38,919 --> 00:02:42,040
Speaker 8: than it is to Brisbane. Yeah, it's state capitol.

47
00:02:42,280 --> 00:02:43,920
Speaker 1: I've been there a few times. I hosted the one

48
00:02:43,960 --> 00:02:47,120
Speaker 1: hundred year celebration and I've been I've I've done again.

49
00:02:47,240 --> 00:02:50,240
Speaker 1: Julia Creek, I always really liked Mount iSER because very

50
00:02:50,280 --> 00:02:52,720
Speaker 1: much a working town as opposed to a five town.

51
00:02:53,200 --> 00:02:55,600
Speaker 1: Most people live there and most people work in the

52
00:02:55,639 --> 00:02:57,840
Speaker 1: mine or on the surrounding industries in the mines.

53
00:02:58,040 --> 00:02:59,800
Speaker 8: Well, I know, I think when I look at you,

54
00:02:59,840 --> 00:03:04,800
Speaker 8: I think Western Queensland. Yes, you're like a stockman.

55
00:03:05,639 --> 00:03:07,680
Speaker 1: So we heard of this story and we thought that

56
00:03:07,840 --> 00:03:10,960
Speaker 1: is a great story, and so return to Mount Eyes

57
00:03:10,960 --> 00:03:13,519
Speaker 1: that interviewed people. We're going to cover the whole story

58
00:03:13,520 --> 00:03:14,440
Speaker 1: over this podcast.

59
00:03:14,600 --> 00:03:16,920
Speaker 8: I just point out to them we didn't turn to

60
00:03:16,960 --> 00:03:18,840
Speaker 8: each other, and this is a great story. It was

61
00:03:18,880 --> 00:03:21,280
Speaker 8: a couple of weeks later after we got back said

62
00:03:21,919 --> 00:03:23,640
Speaker 8: I'm just fascinated by that story.

63
00:03:23,760 --> 00:03:26,440
Speaker 1: You went me too, And we both been into rooms

64
00:03:26,480 --> 00:03:29,120
Speaker 1: in Mount Eyes and individually googled and could find nothing

65
00:03:29,160 --> 00:03:32,240
Speaker 1: about it. There was nothing about this water slide, so

66
00:03:32,320 --> 00:03:36,720
Speaker 1: we thought this is a great story. Well, I mean

67
00:03:36,760 --> 00:03:39,200
Speaker 1: it's interesting people that live there have an opinion on

68
00:03:39,240 --> 00:03:42,160
Speaker 1: Mount Isser obviously. Let's hear from Kim Coglan. She's the

69
00:03:42,560 --> 00:03:46,240
Speaker 1: sister now, she's been on council forever. Kim, what's your

70
00:03:46,600 --> 00:03:48,080
Speaker 1: what's your description of Mount iSER?

71
00:03:48,640 --> 00:03:50,400
Speaker 3: Hard? Rugged?

72
00:03:51,160 --> 00:03:51,520
Speaker 7: Hot?

73
00:03:51,960 --> 00:03:54,880
Speaker 1: Yeah, that's a very quick summation, but that kind of

74
00:03:54,920 --> 00:03:55,720
Speaker 1: does summ it up.

75
00:03:55,800 --> 00:03:56,040
Speaker 7: It is.

76
00:03:56,160 --> 00:03:58,080
Speaker 1: I think it is a hard place to live, Brad.

77
00:03:58,440 --> 00:04:01,800
Speaker 8: In terms of hard, it was thirty one degrees when

78
00:04:01,840 --> 00:04:03,600
Speaker 8: we were in Cans.

79
00:04:03,200 --> 00:04:05,960
Speaker 7: The day before. Yeah, but that's humid heat.

80
00:04:06,200 --> 00:04:06,560
Speaker 1: Yeah.

81
00:04:06,720 --> 00:04:09,040
Speaker 8: And then when we landed at eight thirty in the

82
00:04:09,120 --> 00:04:12,480
Speaker 8: morning in Mount Isaac, it was already thirty one degrees.

83
00:04:12,640 --> 00:04:14,880
Speaker 7: Yeah, that's more like pizza oven heat.

84
00:04:15,000 --> 00:04:16,840
Speaker 1: Yeah, it was like a pizza oven, and it got

85
00:04:16,839 --> 00:04:19,839
Speaker 1: hotder and hotter. Daniel Slade's also she was on the council.

86
00:04:19,920 --> 00:04:21,559
Speaker 1: She was a mayor. I met her when I hosted

87
00:04:21,600 --> 00:04:24,719
Speaker 1: one hundred years celebration. She's not a counselor anymore. Growing

88
00:04:24,800 --> 00:04:25,760
Speaker 1: up in maun isa.

89
00:04:25,800 --> 00:04:28,800
Speaker 4: It was never my intention to stay here. It grows

90
00:04:28,839 --> 00:04:31,640
Speaker 4: on you without you realizing. When I was left school,

91
00:04:31,680 --> 00:04:34,080
Speaker 4: I was out of here, there's no doubt about it.

92
00:04:34,120 --> 00:04:38,400
Speaker 4: And I met people who not just become friends, but

93
00:04:38,520 --> 00:04:41,719
Speaker 4: have become lifelong friends, and people who would you know,

94
00:04:42,120 --> 00:04:44,520
Speaker 4: bury a body for you. Basically, you know these people

95
00:04:44,640 --> 00:04:48,320
Speaker 4: we've grown up together. And I can't explain that sort

96
00:04:48,360 --> 00:04:51,839
Speaker 4: of feeling of community that man Isa has. And maybe

97
00:04:51,839 --> 00:04:54,920
Speaker 4: it's because we're so isolated of course this area.

98
00:04:55,040 --> 00:04:57,279
Speaker 1: And I didn't know this until I went there. Rob

99
00:04:57,400 --> 00:05:01,000
Speaker 1: Catter is the local member for the eight Parliament. Now

100
00:05:01,000 --> 00:05:03,360
Speaker 1: that's Bob Catter's son. Do you know he had a son.

101
00:05:03,960 --> 00:05:04,920
Speaker 7: I knew he had a son.

102
00:05:05,040 --> 00:05:08,680
Speaker 8: I love the fact that the differential is just well,

103
00:05:08,800 --> 00:05:13,200
Speaker 8: Bob Catter, who's a very colorful Australian federal politicians.

104
00:05:12,640 --> 00:05:14,520
Speaker 1: Being there forever to in Parliament, he.

105
00:05:14,520 --> 00:05:17,279
Speaker 8: Has been around and is a very strong advocate for

106
00:05:17,360 --> 00:05:23,160
Speaker 8: Northern Queensland. To differentiate between his colorful personality his son

107
00:05:23,720 --> 00:05:26,240
Speaker 8: is Rob rather than Bob.

108
00:05:26,640 --> 00:05:30,919
Speaker 1: Yeah, it's so funny and it's just one letter, the

109
00:05:30,960 --> 00:05:32,599
Speaker 1: difference between Rob and Bob.

110
00:05:32,760 --> 00:05:34,520
Speaker 7: Yeah, it just clears it up straight away.

111
00:05:34,640 --> 00:05:36,680
Speaker 1: The people that don't know who Bob Catter is. This

112
00:05:36,760 --> 00:05:39,800
Speaker 1: is his famous quote on the news when they're I

113
00:05:39,839 --> 00:05:41,400
Speaker 1: think I talk about gay marriage, weren't they?

114
00:05:41,520 --> 00:05:44,120
Speaker 7: It was it's about the referendum.

115
00:05:44,279 --> 00:05:46,800
Speaker 1: Yeah, and just hear how it takes a turn. It's

116
00:05:46,839 --> 00:05:48,960
Speaker 1: only twenty seconds. But this will this will sum up

117
00:05:49,000 --> 00:05:53,520
Speaker 1: Bob Catter. People are entitled to the sexual proclimities.

118
00:05:53,800 --> 00:05:58,280
Speaker 6: Yeah, I mean, let there be a thousand blossoms blooms.

119
00:05:59,080 --> 00:06:03,320
Speaker 3: So but I ain't spending any time warrant because in

120
00:06:03,360 --> 00:06:07,159
Speaker 3: the meantime, every three months a person is torn to

121
00:06:07,160 --> 00:06:08,240
Speaker 3: pieces by a crocodile.

122
00:06:08,279 --> 00:06:10,880
Speaker 1: And North Queensland there we go torn to pieces by

123
00:06:10,880 --> 00:06:11,520
Speaker 1: a crocodile.

124
00:06:11,720 --> 00:06:14,920
Speaker 8: Do yourself a favor too, if you want to google that,

125
00:06:15,120 --> 00:06:19,560
Speaker 8: just type in Bobcatter crocodiles and you will see it's

126
00:06:19,560 --> 00:06:20,680
Speaker 8: a twenty second clip.

127
00:06:21,000 --> 00:06:24,240
Speaker 7: His face change halfway through that.

128
00:06:24,520 --> 00:06:27,640
Speaker 1: It's unbelievable and that has become famous around the world.

129
00:06:27,720 --> 00:06:28,760
Speaker 1: But that's not Rob Catter.

130
00:06:28,920 --> 00:06:30,120
Speaker 7: No, Rob's a lot more to day.

131
00:06:30,400 --> 00:06:33,799
Speaker 1: Rob Catter actually lives in maun Isa. He's got an officer,

132
00:06:33,839 --> 00:06:35,560
Speaker 1: he's got a house that he's got a family there.

133
00:06:35,600 --> 00:06:39,240
Speaker 8: He's the member for that area, yes, and which must

134
00:06:39,240 --> 00:06:40,919
Speaker 8: be a very big state of electionship.

135
00:06:40,920 --> 00:06:43,360
Speaker 1: He's got a plane that he flies around. Yeah, which

136
00:06:43,360 --> 00:06:47,640
Speaker 1: he famlessly didn't put the landing thing down and skid

137
00:06:47,640 --> 00:06:51,400
Speaker 1: it on the tarmac. I do that all the time

138
00:06:52,120 --> 00:06:55,480
Speaker 1: in your plane. Let's hear from Rob catter Man.

139
00:06:55,480 --> 00:06:56,640
Speaker 2: Isser is a diamond in the rough.

140
00:06:56,720 --> 00:07:01,520
Speaker 9: It's very hard to see it's beauty and its value

141
00:07:01,640 --> 00:07:04,839
Speaker 9: and character on the surface, but it doesn't when you

142
00:07:04,880 --> 00:07:06,400
Speaker 9: open it up and get inside.

143
00:07:06,440 --> 00:07:09,080
Speaker 2: It's just it's great and gets oldier. It's hard to leave.

144
00:07:09,840 --> 00:07:11,760
Speaker 1: He sounds to be like a little bit. There is

145
00:07:11,800 --> 00:07:14,440
Speaker 1: a real phenomena where people come brand and they just stay.

146
00:07:14,680 --> 00:07:15,000
Speaker 7: Yeah.

147
00:07:15,040 --> 00:07:16,800
Speaker 1: Did you have any desire to stay?

148
00:07:17,960 --> 00:07:20,800
Speaker 8: No, it was it was a bit too hot for me,

149
00:07:21,360 --> 00:07:23,960
Speaker 8: given that we did a gig there that I pretty

150
00:07:24,000 --> 00:07:26,880
Speaker 8: much shot my bolt there. You know, a lot of

151
00:07:26,880 --> 00:07:30,400
Speaker 8: the people from the region were there. So after that

152
00:07:30,440 --> 00:07:34,400
Speaker 8: it's pretty much I'll just be picking up papers for

153
00:07:34,560 --> 00:07:35,200
Speaker 8: something to do.

154
00:07:35,720 --> 00:07:38,080
Speaker 1: Yeah, there's no gigs there, basically is what you're saying.

155
00:07:38,320 --> 00:07:41,120
Speaker 8: But I could see, like you remember how the sunsets

156
00:07:41,160 --> 00:07:46,000
Speaker 8: were absolutely beautiful, beautiful and striking. It had that kind

157
00:07:46,040 --> 00:07:48,240
Speaker 8: of thing too, which I think it might be proximate

158
00:07:48,240 --> 00:07:52,880
Speaker 8: to a desert, and so it has that nighttime that's stillness,

159
00:07:53,480 --> 00:07:56,680
Speaker 8: which is you know, really kind of commensurate with the

160
00:07:56,680 --> 00:07:57,600
Speaker 8: Australian outback.

161
00:07:57,840 --> 00:08:00,240
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, yeah, it is a desert, isn't it. Would

162
00:08:00,240 --> 00:08:01,000
Speaker 1: you pop the desert?

163
00:08:02,200 --> 00:08:02,600
Speaker 7: Really? Sure?

164
00:08:02,600 --> 00:08:05,520
Speaker 1: It's the desert. Let's hear a bit more from Rob

165
00:08:05,560 --> 00:08:08,320
Speaker 1: Cata talking about how it's very hard to leave the place.

166
00:08:08,720 --> 00:08:10,720
Speaker 2: For me, I'm a good working example.

167
00:08:10,760 --> 00:08:12,120
Speaker 9: I came out with a two or three year plan

168
00:08:12,280 --> 00:08:15,560
Speaker 9: twenty one years ago, thinking yeah, just make some money,

169
00:08:15,720 --> 00:08:17,800
Speaker 9: and then you start to go, well, what am I.

170
00:08:17,720 --> 00:08:19,640
Speaker 2: Going to improve if I go back to the coast?

171
00:08:20,360 --> 00:08:21,840
Speaker 2: If I go back, what am I going to improve?

172
00:08:21,880 --> 00:08:23,880
Speaker 9: Because I've got a good friendship base here, We've got

173
00:08:23,880 --> 00:08:26,000
Speaker 9: a good house, I've got a job, we got enough

174
00:08:26,000 --> 00:08:27,440
Speaker 9: money to holiday at the end of the year.

175
00:08:27,760 --> 00:08:29,680
Speaker 2: I think a lot of people have that set in

176
00:08:29,680 --> 00:08:30,200
Speaker 2: the head.

177
00:08:30,000 --> 00:08:31,360
Speaker 9: Like I've got to get back to NUSA, I've got

178
00:08:31,360 --> 00:08:33,800
Speaker 9: to get back to Brisbane and Gold Coast. And then

179
00:08:34,200 --> 00:08:36,440
Speaker 9: you start to say, well, why, you know, what was

180
00:08:36,480 --> 00:08:39,720
Speaker 9: better in your life there? And it's inch It's really

181
00:08:39,760 --> 00:08:42,800
Speaker 9: interesting the amount of people that move away and I

182
00:08:42,840 --> 00:08:44,679
Speaker 9: don't want to say with their tail between their legs,

183
00:08:44,679 --> 00:08:46,760
Speaker 9: but it's usually sort of in a good way. They

184
00:08:46,840 --> 00:08:48,800
Speaker 9: come out and say, you know what, I just, I

185
00:08:48,920 --> 00:08:52,240
Speaker 9: just I couldn't replicate the same friendships and community that

186
00:08:52,280 --> 00:08:52,760
Speaker 9: I had here.

187
00:08:53,120 --> 00:08:55,600
Speaker 1: Think about man Eyes. That no one's mentioned yet is

188
00:08:55,600 --> 00:08:58,560
Speaker 1: the mine. It is quite remarkable to go to a

189
00:08:58,600 --> 00:09:01,800
Speaker 1: mining town with mine is right there in the middle

190
00:09:01,800 --> 00:09:03,480
Speaker 1: of the town, right there.

191
00:09:03,640 --> 00:09:06,439
Speaker 7: Yeah. I've been a cup early and the mine's outside.

192
00:09:06,600 --> 00:09:08,000
Speaker 1: Yeah, that's a pit too.

193
00:09:08,600 --> 00:09:09,160
Speaker 7: Yeah.

194
00:09:09,200 --> 00:09:12,679
Speaker 8: And you know, of course, growing up in Victoria there's

195
00:09:12,920 --> 00:09:16,679
Speaker 8: the open Cup mine in the Gippsland region around.

196
00:09:16,400 --> 00:09:19,480
Speaker 7: More Lawn and that's out of town.

197
00:09:19,600 --> 00:09:23,000
Speaker 8: But this is really strike here. It's just in fact,

198
00:09:23,240 --> 00:09:26,559
Speaker 8: the town I believe, is divided into mind side and

199
00:09:27,080 --> 00:09:27,640
Speaker 8: town side.

200
00:09:27,720 --> 00:09:29,959
Speaker 1: Yes, yeah, mind side used to be a bit posh,

201
00:09:30,040 --> 00:09:33,200
Speaker 1: I believe back because of course it would be posh

202
00:09:33,240 --> 00:09:34,840
Speaker 1: because if you on the mind side, do you go,

203
00:09:35,160 --> 00:09:37,880
Speaker 1: I'll just grab some rubies from my mind.

204
00:09:39,240 --> 00:09:39,360
Speaker 8: Well.

205
00:09:39,400 --> 00:09:41,600
Speaker 1: It's interesting because when I first went there, I could

206
00:09:41,600 --> 00:09:43,360
Speaker 1: not believe I could look at the motel. I heard

207
00:09:43,640 --> 00:09:45,600
Speaker 1: a horn blasting and it was the mine. I looked

208
00:09:45,600 --> 00:09:48,440
Speaker 1: at the motel window and there it was right there.

209
00:09:48,520 --> 00:09:48,840
Speaker 7: Yeah.

210
00:09:48,880 --> 00:09:52,200
Speaker 1: So first impressions are really interesting. With Mount iSER. Let's

211
00:09:52,200 --> 00:09:56,280
Speaker 1: see from Corgo again, the counselor talking about someone's first impression.

212
00:09:56,600 --> 00:09:59,040
Speaker 3: Tell this story. I felt like, I'm into Mount Isa,

213
00:09:59,440 --> 00:10:01,839
Speaker 3: never been to in his life. He went to town.

214
00:10:01,920 --> 00:10:05,240
Speaker 3: He's rugby league club. He was drinking there all afternoon

215
00:10:05,240 --> 00:10:06,880
Speaker 3: and I had to take him. He was staying at

216
00:10:06,880 --> 00:10:09,040
Speaker 3: the Berkley Hotel, so I was taking him to the

217
00:10:09,080 --> 00:10:11,480
Speaker 3: Berkeley Hotel and I was going across the Big Bridge

218
00:10:11,880 --> 00:10:14,520
Speaker 3: and at night, when the mines is lit up, it

219
00:10:14,559 --> 00:10:18,680
Speaker 3: looks like a shipliner. And I remember we were going

220
00:10:18,679 --> 00:10:20,840
Speaker 3: across the Big Bridge and he was talking and next

221
00:10:20,880 --> 00:10:23,520
Speaker 3: minute he looked and he said, what the.

222
00:10:23,120 --> 00:10:23,920
Speaker 7: Fuck is that?

223
00:10:24,840 --> 00:10:28,040
Speaker 3: And I said, what are you talking about? Because I

224
00:10:28,200 --> 00:10:30,480
Speaker 3: didn't know what he was going on about. And he

225
00:10:30,559 --> 00:10:32,680
Speaker 3: was in the car horrified, and I said, what are

226
00:10:32,760 --> 00:10:36,400
Speaker 3: you He said, what's that? And I said it's the

227
00:10:36,520 --> 00:10:42,360
Speaker 3: mine and he was absolutely astounded. He said, but it's

228
00:10:42,480 --> 00:10:47,160
Speaker 3: right there, and I said, yeah, so we we don't

229
00:10:47,200 --> 00:10:50,640
Speaker 3: know anything different. But for people coming into Mount Isa,

230
00:10:51,040 --> 00:10:54,040
Speaker 3: I mean, you drive down the Berkeley Highway and you know,

231
00:10:54,080 --> 00:10:57,440
Speaker 3: you go up Railway Avenue and there's this mine, like

232
00:10:57,480 --> 00:11:00,720
Speaker 3: the whole mine is there, Like it's just it's unheard

233
00:11:00,760 --> 00:11:04,360
Speaker 3: of because all other places in Australia, the mine's there,

234
00:11:04,360 --> 00:11:07,320
Speaker 3: but the town's away. But you go back to when

235
00:11:07,360 --> 00:11:10,040
Speaker 3: it was discovered. I mean you had to be right

236
00:11:10,440 --> 00:11:13,040
Speaker 3: near the mine, so you used to have mind side

237
00:11:13,040 --> 00:11:13,920
Speaker 3: and town side.

238
00:11:14,160 --> 00:11:16,960
Speaker 1: The mine was first and then Mount Isa. Do you

239
00:11:17,000 --> 00:11:20,000
Speaker 1: know how they how was discovered? How Man Isa came

240
00:11:20,040 --> 00:11:20,319
Speaker 1: to be.

241
00:11:21,000 --> 00:11:23,800
Speaker 8: I'm strongly paraphrasing here, so you know, feel free to

242
00:11:23,880 --> 00:11:26,559
Speaker 8: correct me. But my understanding was that there was some

243
00:11:26,640 --> 00:11:29,200
Speaker 8: prospectors just moving through the area.

244
00:11:29,920 --> 00:11:35,439
Speaker 7: One of them horses that's something in its foot, yeah, hoof.

245
00:11:35,520 --> 00:11:37,600
Speaker 8: And they turned it over and it was a big

246
00:11:37,679 --> 00:11:42,199
Speaker 8: lump of insert precious metal right here, which begs the

247
00:11:42,280 --> 00:11:45,000
Speaker 8: question because we talk about how the town to be

248
00:11:45,040 --> 00:11:47,640
Speaker 8: called Mount Eliza, but I think I should have been

249
00:11:47,679 --> 00:11:48,760
Speaker 8: named after that horse.

250
00:11:49,000 --> 00:11:52,520
Speaker 7: Yeah, you know, like Malli, Mount Trigger, Mount Nolley.

251
00:11:53,400 --> 00:11:56,079
Speaker 1: Because of course, the indigenous people were there first, of course,

252
00:11:56,280 --> 00:11:58,280
Speaker 1: and they're part of Mount Eyes were of course, and

253
00:11:58,320 --> 00:12:00,640
Speaker 1: it used to be it was known for sort of thing.

254
00:12:00,920 --> 00:12:03,280
Speaker 7: I believe it was known as a training area. It

255
00:12:03,320 --> 00:12:05,720
Speaker 7: was well known for the quality.

256
00:12:05,280 --> 00:12:09,719
Speaker 8: Of the stone axes that were made in the region, right,

257
00:12:09,760 --> 00:12:13,880
Speaker 8: which again would point towards them using really good minerals

258
00:12:13,960 --> 00:12:14,599
Speaker 8: the materials.

259
00:12:14,720 --> 00:12:17,880
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, that they're now mine minerals. Coogo seems to

260
00:12:17,880 --> 00:12:19,160
Speaker 1: know what she's talking about when it comes with the

261
00:12:19,200 --> 00:12:20,040
Speaker 1: history of Mount Isa.

262
00:12:20,360 --> 00:12:23,959
Speaker 3: So the story goes, the horse got a rock thing

263
00:12:24,000 --> 00:12:27,319
Speaker 3: in his hoof and he saw it. A lot of

264
00:12:27,400 --> 00:12:31,240
Speaker 3: them were prospectors at the time, and from there like

265
00:12:31,600 --> 00:12:34,839
Speaker 3: all the prospectors come out, but John Campbell Miles laid

266
00:12:34,880 --> 00:12:39,640
Speaker 3: claim to it first. And there's a long, long history

267
00:12:39,640 --> 00:12:42,760
Speaker 3: of miners coming here. So I just know that my

268
00:12:43,240 --> 00:12:46,480
Speaker 3: great grandfather was the pioneer that discovered, like was with

269
00:12:46,559 --> 00:12:49,920
Speaker 3: John Miles. Then my father was a shift boss in

270
00:12:49,960 --> 00:12:53,400
Speaker 3: the mines, and then like I worked in the mines.

271
00:12:53,760 --> 00:12:57,280
Speaker 1: The mine has had several owners over the years. Well,

272
00:12:57,280 --> 00:13:00,839
Speaker 1: the vibe I get the current owners is not a relationship,

273
00:13:00,920 --> 00:13:01,400
Speaker 1: I believe.

274
00:13:01,600 --> 00:13:05,480
Speaker 8: No, I believe it started out as Mount Eyes are mining. Yes,

275
00:13:05,679 --> 00:13:10,080
Speaker 8: and for years you would see that in the stocks pages.

276
00:13:10,240 --> 00:13:13,760
Speaker 7: Yes, you know m I am was synonymous. You know,

277
00:13:13,760 --> 00:13:14,880
Speaker 7: it was up there with b HP.

278
00:13:15,520 --> 00:13:18,600
Speaker 8: It's one of the most productive mining areas in the

279
00:13:18,640 --> 00:13:23,400
Speaker 8: world in terms of its size, and it's now fallen

280
00:13:23,480 --> 00:13:27,560
Speaker 8: into the hands of what did they say, bean counters

281
00:13:27,840 --> 00:13:29,720
Speaker 8: encounters economers.

282
00:13:29,960 --> 00:13:30,160
Speaker 7: Yeah.

283
00:13:30,160 --> 00:13:32,280
Speaker 1: I actually put the question to Rob Catter let's have

284
00:13:32,280 --> 00:13:32,679
Speaker 1: a listen.

285
00:13:33,080 --> 00:13:34,080
Speaker 2: I'd say really bad.

286
00:13:34,280 --> 00:13:37,560
Speaker 9: It was off the charts good when I sort of

287
00:13:37,760 --> 00:13:40,360
Speaker 9: first moved here and it was Mount Eyes and mines.

288
00:13:40,559 --> 00:13:42,520
Speaker 9: They used to have a Christmas party. I'm told before

289
00:13:42,559 --> 00:13:43,840
Speaker 9: my time they had a Christmas party.

290
00:13:44,160 --> 00:13:44,920
Speaker 2: Every kid in.

291
00:13:44,880 --> 00:13:48,600
Speaker 9: Town, every kid in town, regardless where their parents worked

292
00:13:48,600 --> 00:13:51,760
Speaker 9: at the mine's not got a Christmas present. And the

293
00:13:51,800 --> 00:13:54,120
Speaker 9: friends of mine, like who my age were parted that

294
00:13:54,160 --> 00:13:56,640
Speaker 9: they said made They weren't little presents, like they went

295
00:13:57,720 --> 00:14:01,079
Speaker 9: like a decent bloody toy. And you know, they did

296
00:14:01,160 --> 00:14:04,360
Speaker 9: up sports fields and you know, helped people into housing

297
00:14:04,400 --> 00:14:08,360
Speaker 9: and helped develop housing suburbs and really invested in creating

298
00:14:08,400 --> 00:14:11,840
Speaker 9: a good livable city and keeping fi FO out and

299
00:14:11,840 --> 00:14:17,000
Speaker 9: making a permanent workforce. And you know, Extrata came in,

300
00:14:17,040 --> 00:14:20,320
Speaker 9: which was the precursor to Glencore, and it's just completely different.

301
00:14:21,080 --> 00:14:24,240
Speaker 9: There's a lot of animosity towards the mine now, I'd

302
00:14:24,280 --> 00:14:27,400
Speaker 9: say because they do it. They're just commercially focused and

303
00:14:27,800 --> 00:14:29,240
Speaker 9: that same community focus.

304
00:14:29,120 --> 00:14:31,400
Speaker 1: They're not mining them. The money people aren't there from.

305
00:14:32,120 --> 00:14:35,920
Speaker 9: The global commodity traders, where one of one hundred and

306
00:14:35,920 --> 00:14:37,920
Speaker 9: fifty or more minds are in the world where respecting

307
00:14:37,960 --> 00:14:43,320
Speaker 9: the it's Beecadust Tom and they work off commodity prices

308
00:14:43,360 --> 00:14:45,840
Speaker 9: and high out. They'd require higher returns and a lot

309
00:14:45,840 --> 00:14:48,080
Speaker 9: of other mining companies do around the place, so they'll

310
00:14:48,280 --> 00:14:50,480
Speaker 9: shut something down before someone else would.

311
00:14:50,480 --> 00:14:53,240
Speaker 3: And they're not miners, they're economists.

312
00:14:53,600 --> 00:14:54,640
Speaker 1: Oh, they're bankers.

313
00:14:54,800 --> 00:14:57,720
Speaker 3: Yeah, and like it's yeah, so I think that's where

314
00:14:58,280 --> 00:15:00,600
Speaker 3: that's where the trouble is. We need a mine company

315
00:15:00,760 --> 00:15:02,840
Speaker 3: to buy out maunt Ey's minds.

316
00:15:03,280 --> 00:15:03,480
Speaker 5: Yeah.

317
00:15:06,200 --> 00:15:09,400
Speaker 1: Hello, so I'm bringing you early.

318
00:15:09,480 --> 00:15:14,400
Speaker 8: I've realized we've got Troy rolling from the Northwest Weekly.

319
00:15:14,800 --> 00:15:17,040
Speaker 1: Hell are Troy? I'm not too bad. Tell us what's

320
00:15:17,040 --> 00:15:19,600
Speaker 1: your relationship with Mount Isaac? You there when you were

321
00:15:19,600 --> 00:15:20,720
Speaker 1: a younger man, is it right?

322
00:15:21,080 --> 00:15:25,080
Speaker 10: Ah, Yeah, that's right. I started my journalism cadet ship

323
00:15:25,120 --> 00:15:28,200
Speaker 10: in Mount Isao maybe ten to fifteen years ago, and

324
00:15:28,240 --> 00:15:30,920
Speaker 10: then I went off and did other things in media,

325
00:15:30,960 --> 00:15:33,680
Speaker 10: and then a friend of mine started the newspaper up

326
00:15:33,720 --> 00:15:36,320
Speaker 10: here again last year, and so yeah, here I am.

327
00:15:36,480 --> 00:15:38,600
Speaker 1: Troy showed me around Mount Isaac When he said he

328
00:15:38,600 --> 00:15:40,120
Speaker 1: went off and did other things, brava. He worked for

329
00:15:40,160 --> 00:15:42,240
Speaker 1: a very famous politician. But we're not going to interview

330
00:15:42,280 --> 00:15:42,920
Speaker 1: him about that.

331
00:15:43,000 --> 00:15:46,160
Speaker 7: Right, did you ever think you'd go back there? I

332
00:15:46,160 --> 00:15:46,440
Speaker 7: don't know.

333
00:15:46,440 --> 00:15:48,720
Speaker 10: It's one of those places where people always say they

334
00:15:48,760 --> 00:15:51,480
Speaker 10: come back. It's like a boomerang sort of town. People

335
00:15:51,520 --> 00:15:54,160
Speaker 10: keep coming back, so when you actually walk down the

336
00:15:54,160 --> 00:15:57,560
Speaker 10: street and people remember you, they're not always surprised to

337
00:15:57,560 --> 00:15:58,440
Speaker 10: see that you've come back.

338
00:15:58,440 --> 00:16:01,600
Speaker 8: To be honest, it's like a town where people go, oh,

339
00:16:01,640 --> 00:16:02,800
Speaker 8: you've been away?

340
00:16:03,360 --> 00:16:04,600
Speaker 7: Did five to seven.

341
00:16:04,480 --> 00:16:06,640
Speaker 1: When I was talking to you. The relationship between Mount

342
00:16:06,720 --> 00:16:09,160
Speaker 1: i and the mine is really interesting because they're kind

343
00:16:09,160 --> 00:16:10,440
Speaker 1: of proud of the mine, aren't they.

344
00:16:10,720 --> 00:16:13,680
Speaker 10: Oh yeah, this place is very very pro mining, so

345
00:16:13,920 --> 00:16:17,520
Speaker 10: because it's basically a gigantic mine with a town wrapped

346
00:16:17,560 --> 00:16:20,440
Speaker 10: around it in the middle of nowhere. So I mean

347
00:16:20,440 --> 00:16:22,760
Speaker 10: the mine was here before the town as well. So

348
00:16:23,000 --> 00:16:25,280
Speaker 10: if you'd be anti mining in Mount Isy would be

349
00:16:25,360 --> 00:16:25,880
Speaker 10: very lonely.

350
00:16:27,920 --> 00:16:30,520
Speaker 1: And now tell us about is part of the mind

351
00:16:30,560 --> 00:16:31,440
Speaker 1: shutting down? Soon?

352
00:16:31,760 --> 00:16:34,000
Speaker 10: It is? Yeah, So later this year they'll have the

353
00:16:34,080 --> 00:16:37,040
Speaker 10: underground section, which is actually there's like hundreds of kilometers

354
00:16:37,080 --> 00:16:41,600
Speaker 10: of underground mine there that they extract copper from, and well,

355
00:16:41,640 --> 00:16:44,400
Speaker 10: that whole section is closing down. So it's somewhere between

356
00:16:44,440 --> 00:16:47,040
Speaker 10: six hundred and twelve hundred jobs, which is about ten

357
00:16:47,080 --> 00:16:49,480
Speaker 10: percent of the entire workforce in Mount iSER.

358
00:16:49,880 --> 00:16:52,960
Speaker 1: Yeah, and what's the vibe about that? That's obviously a

359
00:16:53,000 --> 00:16:53,520
Speaker 1: bad thing.

360
00:16:53,960 --> 00:16:56,680
Speaker 10: Oh yeah, yeah, I mean it's obviously people don't like

361
00:16:56,720 --> 00:17:00,280
Speaker 10: seeing the mines closed as obviously people that think it

362
00:17:00,320 --> 00:17:03,200
Speaker 10: should stay open. There's other people that say, that's what

363
00:17:03,240 --> 00:17:06,080
Speaker 10: a mind does, it runs out of stuff. There's other

364
00:17:06,160 --> 00:17:09,400
Speaker 10: things on the horizon though. There's always minds being proposed

365
00:17:09,400 --> 00:17:12,080
Speaker 10: out here as well, so it's not just the one

366
00:17:12,119 --> 00:17:15,520
Speaker 10: manners of mine. There's quite a lot of mining production

367
00:17:15,600 --> 00:17:16,480
Speaker 10: all around the area.

368
00:17:16,560 --> 00:17:18,639
Speaker 8: To be honest, has it run out of stuff or

369
00:17:18,720 --> 00:17:20,400
Speaker 8: is it an economic decision?

370
00:17:20,560 --> 00:17:23,480
Speaker 10: Depends what you ask. If you ask the company Glencore,

371
00:17:23,560 --> 00:17:26,840
Speaker 10: they'll tell you that they've basically just depleted the resource.

372
00:17:26,920 --> 00:17:29,560
Speaker 10: So they just it's just not economical for them to

373
00:17:29,560 --> 00:17:32,320
Speaker 10: get it out anymore. They're just closing it. Well, they're

374
00:17:32,320 --> 00:17:35,000
Speaker 10: going to restart and open cut mine over the top

375
00:17:35,040 --> 00:17:36,679
Speaker 10: of it in the next few years.

376
00:17:36,840 --> 00:17:38,720
Speaker 1: Well, that'll create more jobs, won't it.

377
00:17:38,720 --> 00:17:39,120
Speaker 7: It will.

378
00:17:39,200 --> 00:17:43,040
Speaker 10: Yeah, they're not as many jobs as what is currently

379
00:17:43,080 --> 00:17:45,919
Speaker 10: in the underground section, but it will create new jobs.

380
00:17:46,359 --> 00:17:48,600
Speaker 10: The thing is that mine hasn't been fully sort of

381
00:17:48,640 --> 00:17:51,240
Speaker 10: signed off on yet they haven't made a final investment decision,

382
00:17:51,359 --> 00:17:53,680
Speaker 10: so just have to wait and see.

383
00:17:53,960 --> 00:17:57,000
Speaker 8: And there's a resistance to five to zo there as well,

384
00:17:57,080 --> 00:17:59,920
Speaker 8: do isn't there that? Is there a concern that these

385
00:18:00,080 --> 00:18:03,440
Speaker 8: jobs will be allocated to locals or yeah?

386
00:18:03,480 --> 00:18:05,760
Speaker 10: Well that's always the big battle out here in any

387
00:18:05,800 --> 00:18:08,879
Speaker 10: mining town, is that. Yeah, you get the guys that

388
00:18:09,000 --> 00:18:12,080
Speaker 10: fly in and fly out, and they live in camps

389
00:18:12,200 --> 00:18:15,120
Speaker 10: or they live on accommodation, and you know, they don't

390
00:18:15,160 --> 00:18:18,880
Speaker 10: spend outside from sort of buying beer and playing the pokey's,

391
00:18:18,920 --> 00:18:21,280
Speaker 10: they don't really commit to the town very much.

392
00:18:21,640 --> 00:18:24,000
Speaker 1: I think it was you telling me, was it Glenko

393
00:18:24,119 --> 00:18:27,040
Speaker 1: who changed the shift time so it went from eight

394
00:18:27,080 --> 00:18:29,240
Speaker 1: hours to a different twelve hour shift?

395
00:18:29,280 --> 00:18:29,760
Speaker 7: Was that right?

396
00:18:29,880 --> 00:18:33,600
Speaker 10: It was the previous company that owned the mine before Glencore,

397
00:18:33,760 --> 00:18:37,640
Speaker 10: so extrata they extended from eight to twelve hour shifts.

398
00:18:38,119 --> 00:18:41,280
Speaker 10: And if you listen to longtime locals, y'or two, it

399
00:18:41,320 --> 00:18:44,520
Speaker 10: really did take a lot of the heart out of

400
00:18:44,680 --> 00:18:48,040
Speaker 10: a lot of the community organizations, particularly because you know,

401
00:18:48,160 --> 00:18:49,600
Speaker 10: I don't know if you guys have ever worked a

402
00:18:49,640 --> 00:18:52,320
Speaker 10: twelve hour shift, but you're pretty buggered by the end

403
00:18:52,359 --> 00:18:52,640
Speaker 10: of it.

404
00:18:53,040 --> 00:18:54,919
Speaker 1: Hang on, hang on, hang on, hang on, Troy, you're

405
00:18:54,960 --> 00:18:57,440
Speaker 1: asking two comedians if they've ever worked a twelve hour shift.

406
00:18:58,119 --> 00:19:02,399
Speaker 8: Answers know we did drive them Durham back.

407
00:19:03,520 --> 00:19:05,919
Speaker 1: You're right, once you finish a twelve hour shift in

408
00:19:05,920 --> 00:19:08,439
Speaker 1: the physical job, you can't go to tennis or soccer

409
00:19:08,480 --> 00:19:09,280
Speaker 1: practice your knack.

410
00:19:09,359 --> 00:19:11,679
Speaker 8: It is that three ships down to two? Or is

411
00:19:11,720 --> 00:19:14,280
Speaker 8: that two shifts and closing down?

412
00:19:14,520 --> 00:19:15,639
Speaker 10: It's two ships now.

413
00:19:15,760 --> 00:19:17,640
Speaker 1: But of course, with the history of the mind when

414
00:19:17,680 --> 00:19:21,200
Speaker 1: we were up there, Erika showed us the underground hospital,

415
00:19:21,200 --> 00:19:23,840
Speaker 1: which was a feature in World War Two. The miners

416
00:19:23,840 --> 00:19:24,960
Speaker 1: built that, didn't they.

417
00:19:25,000 --> 00:19:28,400
Speaker 10: My understanding is that Northern Australia was pretty undeveloped back then.

418
00:19:28,560 --> 00:19:31,560
Speaker 10: The war was used to try and build highways, and

419
00:19:31,600 --> 00:19:35,600
Speaker 10: they built airstrips and in case the Japanese invaded, So

420
00:19:35,720 --> 00:19:37,960
Speaker 10: I think out here was obviously going to be a

421
00:19:38,000 --> 00:19:40,600
Speaker 10: place that soldiers were going to fall back to if

422
00:19:40,600 --> 00:19:43,400
Speaker 10: the Japanese ever did come down, and so they needed

423
00:19:43,400 --> 00:19:46,160
Speaker 10: a hospital to be able to put injured soldiers in

424
00:19:46,320 --> 00:19:47,840
Speaker 10: and all the rest of us. There's like a bunch

425
00:19:47,840 --> 00:19:50,040
Speaker 10: of tunnels built into the side of a mountain out

426
00:19:50,040 --> 00:19:51,400
Speaker 10: here that that was a hospital.

427
00:19:51,520 --> 00:19:55,440
Speaker 8: We visited that amazing looking at their history, it would

428
00:19:55,440 --> 00:19:58,520
Speaker 8: have been a nice, big, fat, juicy target for the

429
00:19:58,920 --> 00:20:04,280
Speaker 8: Japanese army because there was in fact, after the bombing

430
00:20:04,320 --> 00:20:07,280
Speaker 8: of Darwin. I think that was an influence where they said, well,

431
00:20:07,280 --> 00:20:08,960
Speaker 8: we have to have a hospital, it's safe.

432
00:20:09,960 --> 00:20:11,960
Speaker 7: And on top of that, there.

433
00:20:11,840 --> 00:20:15,679
Speaker 8: Was the Brisbane line, which was basically, we will defend

434
00:20:15,720 --> 00:20:18,720
Speaker 8: everything from Brisbane back, so that, you know, the people

435
00:20:18,800 --> 00:20:22,080
Speaker 8: might have actually felt like they were being isolated there.

436
00:20:22,280 --> 00:20:24,400
Speaker 10: There were a lot of American soldiers in man Isa

437
00:20:24,480 --> 00:20:26,680
Speaker 10: during the war too, and they used to get into

438
00:20:26,720 --> 00:20:29,080
Speaker 10: fights with the miners and go down to the riverbank

439
00:20:29,080 --> 00:20:29,880
Speaker 10: and sort it all out.

440
00:20:31,760 --> 00:20:34,560
Speaker 1: You live in Mount Isaa, you work there. Talking about

441
00:20:34,760 --> 00:20:37,080
Speaker 1: the lack of things for young people to do, is

442
00:20:37,119 --> 00:20:38,680
Speaker 1: that an issue you wreck.

443
00:20:38,680 --> 00:20:40,840
Speaker 10: Well, we're in the middle of nowhere. So if you

444
00:20:40,840 --> 00:20:42,879
Speaker 10: don't like what Manasa has to offer, you don't have

445
00:20:43,080 --> 00:20:45,639
Speaker 10: much else to choose from. I guess it just depends

446
00:20:45,680 --> 00:20:48,280
Speaker 10: what you like to do. Because we've got Lake Mundara,

447
00:20:48,359 --> 00:20:52,800
Speaker 10: which is, without sounding like a tourist pamphlet, there's you know,

448
00:20:52,920 --> 00:20:55,879
Speaker 10: Lake Mundaru is a pretty big it's the water source,

449
00:20:55,880 --> 00:20:58,240
Speaker 10: but they've turned into a big, nice lake where people

450
00:20:58,280 --> 00:21:01,000
Speaker 10: go fishing and boating and stuff, and it's a pretty

451
00:21:01,080 --> 00:21:04,360
Speaker 10: multicultural place as well, as much as people probably don't realize.

452
00:21:04,400 --> 00:21:06,840
Speaker 10: So there's a lot of good restaurants and stuff as well.

453
00:21:06,920 --> 00:21:09,680
Speaker 10: So I don't mind it, but I guess it just depends.

454
00:21:09,800 --> 00:21:12,160
Speaker 10: You know, if you're wanting to go and see metallic

455
00:21:12,240 --> 00:21:13,720
Speaker 10: or on the weekend or something, you're not going to

456
00:21:13,720 --> 00:21:15,399
Speaker 10: be doing that from Mount Isa.

457
00:21:16,040 --> 00:21:18,360
Speaker 7: What an appropriate thing in mining town.

458
00:21:19,720 --> 00:21:22,760
Speaker 1: In Mount Isa? He Troy, thanks for talking to us.

459
00:21:22,800 --> 00:21:23,560
Speaker 10: No problem.

460
00:21:24,000 --> 00:21:26,159
Speaker 1: Well, apart from all the issues with the mind, so

461
00:21:26,240 --> 00:21:28,840
Speaker 1: that part of the mind's closing down. There is this

462
00:21:28,880 --> 00:21:31,479
Speaker 1: whole problem with the young people and a lack of

463
00:21:31,480 --> 00:21:33,000
Speaker 1: things for the kids to do.

464
00:21:33,080 --> 00:21:36,920
Speaker 8: Brad, there is, but the relationships are strong. I think

465
00:21:37,119 --> 00:21:40,280
Speaker 8: Danielle was talking before. I think she said something like

466
00:21:41,560 --> 00:21:44,159
Speaker 8: people have got your back. People would bury your body

467
00:21:44,200 --> 00:21:47,439
Speaker 8: for you basically. Okay, so not a good idea in

468
00:21:47,480 --> 00:21:52,280
Speaker 8: a mining town. Yeah, probably a better way to get

469
00:21:52,359 --> 00:21:55,040
Speaker 8: rid of it. It kind of speaks to firm friends.

470
00:21:55,080 --> 00:21:57,920
Speaker 8: And Rob Catter said the same, how close these people

471
00:21:57,960 --> 00:22:00,800
Speaker 8: are and so even if you don't have kids, you're

472
00:22:00,800 --> 00:22:02,720
Speaker 8: concerned about the issues for their children.

473
00:22:03,000 --> 00:22:05,440
Speaker 1: Yeah, but there is I mean there's lots of sporting clubs.

474
00:22:05,720 --> 00:22:07,600
Speaker 1: There is a lack of the things for the kids through.

475
00:22:07,680 --> 00:22:08,840
Speaker 1: Let's hear from Rob Catder.

476
00:22:09,080 --> 00:22:11,399
Speaker 2: Oh well, you know it was really nice.

477
00:22:11,440 --> 00:22:15,879
Speaker 9: Once a politician in Brisbane, a lady had come up

478
00:22:15,920 --> 00:22:17,920
Speaker 9: to me and said, Robert, we just want to say

479
00:22:17,920 --> 00:22:19,480
Speaker 9: to you. I spent a few days out in the

480
00:22:19,760 --> 00:22:22,639
Speaker 9: committee here and Mount Easa getting across some of the

481
00:22:22,720 --> 00:22:24,280
Speaker 9: issues here. And she said, you know, I get a

482
00:22:24,320 --> 00:22:26,880
Speaker 9: lot of people from my office in Brisbane. She said,

483
00:22:26,880 --> 00:22:29,000
Speaker 9: I got to say they don't have real problems.

484
00:22:29,280 --> 00:22:31,520
Speaker 2: You got problems.

485
00:22:32,600 --> 00:22:37,360
Speaker 9: If you wanted to take education, health, population decline, industry

486
00:22:37,920 --> 00:22:41,119
Speaker 9: risk and industry growth and just about every metric we

487
00:22:41,119 --> 00:22:45,800
Speaker 9: could say, we've got the alcoholism, social disruption, crime, you

488
00:22:45,880 --> 00:22:48,080
Speaker 9: could put in a real negative slant on it.

489
00:22:48,160 --> 00:22:50,960
Speaker 2: But kriky, we still love being here.

490
00:22:56,440 --> 00:23:00,480
Speaker 3: Oh look, this is look. And I'll speak very bluntly

491
00:23:00,520 --> 00:23:03,639
Speaker 3: with you. You know, people say, oh, there's nothing to do,

492
00:23:03,920 --> 00:23:07,480
Speaker 3: rah rah, Well hang on a minute, Like we shouldn't

493
00:23:07,520 --> 00:23:09,679
Speaker 3: have to put on something for you to do. You

494
00:23:09,720 --> 00:23:12,480
Speaker 3: can still like we've got a skate park here, we've

495
00:23:12,480 --> 00:23:15,760
Speaker 3: got a pump track, We've got like thirteen parks or something,

496
00:23:16,040 --> 00:23:18,280
Speaker 3: and nearly all of them have got play equipment in it.

497
00:23:18,680 --> 00:23:20,919
Speaker 3: Or how about you just go get your mate and

498
00:23:20,960 --> 00:23:23,120
Speaker 3: get on a bike and ride around for a little bit,

499
00:23:23,160 --> 00:23:25,600
Speaker 3: you know, not break into houses or anything, but you know,

500
00:23:25,760 --> 00:23:28,720
Speaker 3: just ride around on your bikes. And my son especially

501
00:23:28,920 --> 00:23:30,840
Speaker 3: was never without a ball in his hand. He'd kick

502
00:23:30,880 --> 00:23:33,359
Speaker 3: a ball around or him and his mates would go,

503
00:23:33,600 --> 00:23:36,320
Speaker 3: you know and do their stuff. So I still think

504
00:23:36,320 --> 00:23:38,200
Speaker 3: there's a lot to do in Mount isab Igo.

505
00:23:38,280 --> 00:23:39,760
Speaker 1: Yeah, well, it mean she makes a good point. I

506
00:23:39,760 --> 00:23:41,920
Speaker 1: mean we didn't have much. I mean we were in Melbourne,

507
00:23:41,960 --> 00:23:43,440
Speaker 1: but we didn't have that much growing up as kids

508
00:23:43,480 --> 00:23:45,080
Speaker 1: to entertain ourselves, did we know?

509
00:23:45,359 --> 00:23:49,160
Speaker 8: And in fact you talk about just a digress, you're

510
00:23:49,160 --> 00:23:51,040
Speaker 8: talking about it having a ball in your hand. Now,

511
00:23:51,040 --> 00:23:55,960
Speaker 8: I believe in your street there was somebody who moved out.

512
00:23:56,119 --> 00:23:58,399
Speaker 1: Oh sure, we're talking about Johnny Firthy who plays for

513
00:23:58,440 --> 00:24:02,080
Speaker 1: the NBA. Now, the kid that I've practically raised, he

514
00:24:02,160 --> 00:24:04,359
Speaker 1: lives across the road and he used to play basketball

515
00:24:04,359 --> 00:24:05,920
Speaker 1: the time with the school at the local clubs and

516
00:24:05,960 --> 00:24:07,960
Speaker 1: then he got signed up for the NBA.

517
00:24:08,359 --> 00:24:11,040
Speaker 8: It's the same in Central Australia. And I was talking

518
00:24:11,040 --> 00:24:14,159
Speaker 8: to a football or Rubert buttheris ex Collingwood player who

519
00:24:14,240 --> 00:24:17,080
Speaker 8: went up and did some developmental work in the central

520
00:24:17,080 --> 00:24:19,680
Speaker 8: part of the Northern Cheritory. And I said to him,

521
00:24:20,040 --> 00:24:24,040
Speaker 8: do you think that Indigenous people are better at football?

522
00:24:24,080 --> 00:24:26,840
Speaker 8: And he said he felt that this is his opinion.

523
00:24:27,119 --> 00:24:30,000
Speaker 8: He felt that it was because they have a ball

524
00:24:30,040 --> 00:24:32,840
Speaker 8: in their hand from the moment they can walk, really,

525
00:24:33,080 --> 00:24:35,359
Speaker 8: they have a footy or they're having a game of footy,

526
00:24:35,920 --> 00:24:36,400
Speaker 8: and so.

527
00:24:36,400 --> 00:24:38,479
Speaker 1: That because it's cheap entertainment, it is.

528
00:24:38,720 --> 00:24:41,520
Speaker 8: And he said, there'll be eighty kids playing, forty on

529
00:24:41,720 --> 00:24:45,680
Speaker 8: each side playing footy. I'm just really intrigued by how

530
00:24:45,680 --> 00:24:48,840
Speaker 8: important a ball is. He said that by the time

531
00:24:49,400 --> 00:24:52,840
Speaker 8: you get to teenage years, you've seen every bounce to

532
00:24:52,920 --> 00:24:55,639
Speaker 8: that ball. And that's what makes you ten thousand hour experts.

533
00:24:55,720 --> 00:24:57,360
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's why the theory that you need

534
00:24:57,359 --> 00:25:00,879
Speaker 1: ten thousand hours of practicing your chosen field, like us

535
00:25:00,920 --> 00:25:03,480
Speaker 1: in standup comedy. Ten thousand hours.

536
00:25:03,680 --> 00:25:06,360
Speaker 7: And I bounced a lot of balls done.

537
00:25:06,720 --> 00:25:08,400
Speaker 1: So you've got all the sporting clubs up there. You've

538
00:25:08,400 --> 00:25:12,040
Speaker 1: got the forty, the cricket, they've got tennis in Mount Eyeser,

539
00:25:12,280 --> 00:25:15,119
Speaker 1: all sorts of sports. Body bearing, yeah, the body bearing,

540
00:25:15,200 --> 00:25:16,120
Speaker 1: the soccer cop.

541
00:25:16,000 --> 00:25:17,280
Speaker 7: The body Finding club.

542
00:25:19,040 --> 00:25:22,720
Speaker 1: They've got a great pool up there, but this you

543
00:25:22,760 --> 00:25:25,800
Speaker 1: would hope, Okay, a big swim center outdoors and the

544
00:25:25,960 --> 00:25:29,560
Speaker 1: outdoor swim center there right near the mine. Actually it's

545
00:25:29,680 --> 00:25:32,399
Speaker 1: right next to the mine. But the thing is the

546
00:25:32,480 --> 00:25:36,160
Speaker 1: example we're about to play illustrates how bored the kids

547
00:25:36,160 --> 00:25:39,200
Speaker 1: are a mount eyes are. Oh, let's shay. She runs

548
00:25:39,200 --> 00:25:41,320
Speaker 1: the pool there, she runs the swim center. Let her

549
00:25:41,440 --> 00:25:42,320
Speaker 1: tell the story.

550
00:25:42,400 --> 00:25:44,200
Speaker 5: A couple of years ago we had some crocodiles in

551
00:25:44,240 --> 00:25:47,160
Speaker 5: the pool as well. Her little turtle last year also,

552
00:25:48,119 --> 00:25:50,280
Speaker 5: not that the turtle was too bad, but the crocodiles

553
00:25:50,280 --> 00:25:51,680
Speaker 5: were a bit more of a feat to get out.

554
00:25:51,960 --> 00:25:55,160
Speaker 5: Someone had been trapping them out at the lake and

555
00:25:55,440 --> 00:25:57,560
Speaker 5: brought them in overnight and threw them over the fence,

556
00:25:57,760 --> 00:26:02,360
Speaker 5: and they've gone into the water. I opened the pool

557
00:26:02,400 --> 00:26:05,200
Speaker 5: as normal. It was pitch black, spotlights on. I did

558
00:26:05,200 --> 00:26:07,640
Speaker 5: my walk around and check. But the crocodiles were obviously

559
00:26:07,640 --> 00:26:10,800
Speaker 5: in the corners in the shadow early in the morning,

560
00:26:11,000 --> 00:26:15,360
Speaker 5: just dormant. And then as the water started churning up.

561
00:26:15,400 --> 00:26:18,480
Speaker 5: We had an aquaerobics class on. There was music pumping

562
00:26:18,560 --> 00:26:21,959
Speaker 5: and everything was going. They started to move around and

563
00:26:22,440 --> 00:26:24,199
Speaker 5: we don't know whether they wanted to join in or

564
00:26:24,280 --> 00:26:27,720
Speaker 5: just escape the place fast. They looked pretty nervous and

565
00:26:28,040 --> 00:26:30,520
Speaker 5: pretty scared at first. To be honest, I don't know

566
00:26:30,560 --> 00:26:32,159
Speaker 5: who was more scared. A couple of people in the

567
00:26:32,200 --> 00:26:35,439
Speaker 5: class started screaming and running and didn't really know what

568
00:26:35,480 --> 00:26:37,600
Speaker 5: was going on at first until some of them were

569
00:26:37,600 --> 00:26:42,160
Speaker 5: screaming lizard, crocodile, lizard, crocodile. And yeah, it went from there.

570
00:26:42,400 --> 00:26:45,159
Speaker 5: So we could scoop some out with the buckets. They

571
00:26:45,160 --> 00:26:47,720
Speaker 5: were only little babies. Some of them were a little

572
00:26:47,760 --> 00:26:50,640
Speaker 5: bit faster, and we had to get one of the

573
00:26:51,080 --> 00:26:54,240
Speaker 5: ladies we know quite well from the class. Actually, her

574
00:26:54,359 --> 00:26:57,439
Speaker 5: husband came down. He's a big fishing fella, and he

575
00:26:57,520 --> 00:26:59,600
Speaker 5: brought cast nets and that's how we got them.

576
00:27:00,119 --> 00:27:03,440
Speaker 8: Okay, So I just want to point out, like Shay

577
00:27:03,480 --> 00:27:06,720
Speaker 8: and I can imagine that's that's a problem. But I've

578
00:27:06,760 --> 00:27:10,160
Speaker 8: seen a lizard and I've seen a crocodile, and we're

579
00:27:10,200 --> 00:27:12,200
Speaker 8: talking a difference in meters.

580
00:27:12,359 --> 00:27:15,200
Speaker 1: Yeah, you know, I think there were baby crocodiles, but

581
00:27:15,280 --> 00:27:16,560
Speaker 1: they're still scary.

582
00:27:17,040 --> 00:27:22,119
Speaker 7: I know they they were very different. I believe that

583
00:27:22,160 --> 00:27:27,520
Speaker 7: they probably were similar about twenty million billion years ago. Yes,

584
00:27:27,840 --> 00:27:29,000
Speaker 7: but they branched out.

585
00:27:29,359 --> 00:27:31,800
Speaker 1: Well, it's kind of like saying Wallaby kangaroo. Wellby kangaroo,

586
00:27:31,920 --> 00:27:32,880
Speaker 1: isn't it? Is it?

587
00:27:33,080 --> 00:27:33,199
Speaker 6: Now?

588
00:27:33,720 --> 00:27:37,080
Speaker 8: I felt like it's Molly saying Wallaby horse wall Okay,

589
00:27:37,320 --> 00:27:41,480
Speaker 8: that's probably what Bob Catta was talking about. Yes, I

590
00:27:41,520 --> 00:27:44,880
Speaker 8: mean being ripped apart over a series of days.

591
00:27:44,640 --> 00:27:48,320
Speaker 1: In the swimming pool in Mount Isa. Well, anyway, that's

592
00:27:48,400 --> 00:27:50,800
Speaker 1: the thing about Man Isa. We're getting to the water

593
00:27:50,880 --> 00:27:53,480
Speaker 1: slide now because the kids are say bored, they're putting

594
00:27:53,480 --> 00:27:56,520
Speaker 1: crocodiles in the pool. Even though she didn't say they

595
00:27:56,560 --> 00:27:59,080
Speaker 1: were kids in that quote, but she told me later

596
00:27:59,119 --> 00:28:01,879
Speaker 1: they were kids, did it. Let's cross the Danny Old Slide,

597
00:28:01,920 --> 00:28:04,199
Speaker 1: the former mayor and because there used to be a

598
00:28:04,240 --> 00:28:05,920
Speaker 1: bread I don't know if you know that there used

599
00:28:05,920 --> 00:28:08,159
Speaker 1: to be a water slide in Mount iSER.

600
00:28:08,320 --> 00:28:09,359
Speaker 7: No, I did not know that.

601
00:28:11,520 --> 00:28:12,000
Speaker 2: For a while.

602
00:28:12,040 --> 00:28:14,880
Speaker 4: When I was a kid here we had a water slide.

603
00:28:15,119 --> 00:28:17,280
Speaker 4: Is that quite a ride on my bike, to be honest.

604
00:28:17,320 --> 00:28:19,640
Speaker 4: But I would ride out there, do the water slide

605
00:28:19,720 --> 00:28:21,359
Speaker 4: and have the time of my life. And of course

606
00:28:21,520 --> 00:28:24,000
Speaker 4: it was a private entity and it went broke, all

607
00:28:24,320 --> 00:28:28,119
Speaker 4: closed down. And the one thing that I realized as

608
00:28:28,119 --> 00:28:30,680
Speaker 4: a resident let alone. The mayor is we need more

609
00:28:30,920 --> 00:28:33,480
Speaker 4: fun things for kids to do, especially the older kids.

610
00:28:33,520 --> 00:28:35,480
Speaker 4: You know, we're talking you for crime and lots of

611
00:28:35,480 --> 00:28:38,480
Speaker 4: things happening. You need to keep these kids engaged, lots

612
00:28:38,480 --> 00:28:41,400
Speaker 4: of fun things to do. A water slide just made sense,

613
00:28:41,760 --> 00:28:41,960
Speaker 4: you know.

614
00:28:42,760 --> 00:28:46,080
Speaker 1: There we have it. Someone suggested a water slide for

615
00:28:46,200 --> 00:28:48,440
Speaker 1: Mount iSER. So we get to the start of the

616
00:28:48,600 --> 00:28:49,440
Speaker 1: story bra.

617
00:28:49,520 --> 00:28:51,760
Speaker 8: All right, and so they didn't have that water slide.

618
00:28:51,760 --> 00:28:53,640
Speaker 8: The another ones we had with kids, we just had

619
00:28:53,720 --> 00:28:55,600
Speaker 8: slipping side. They had a big bit of plastic.

620
00:28:55,640 --> 00:28:57,880
Speaker 1: A dad would put ten pegs in the plastic and

621
00:28:58,440 --> 00:28:59,920
Speaker 1: also be near the road. We used to do one

622
00:29:00,000 --> 00:29:01,560
Speaker 1: on the Naturetrerip and you could often go into the

623
00:29:01,600 --> 00:29:02,800
Speaker 1: driveway or the road.

624
00:29:02,800 --> 00:29:05,200
Speaker 8: And you can put a little bit of deg urgence

625
00:29:05,280 --> 00:29:08,840
Speaker 8: on it and if you slid onto that cooch grass

626
00:29:09,320 --> 00:29:10,880
Speaker 8: there was next to your's skim for this.

627
00:29:12,800 --> 00:29:14,760
Speaker 1: So we've come to the end of the first episode.

628
00:29:15,000 --> 00:29:17,600
Speaker 1: So Mount Isa they're going to get a water slide. Well,

629
00:29:17,640 --> 00:29:21,960
Speaker 1: it's been proposed, but there's quite a few hurdles to

630
00:29:22,080 --> 00:29:23,720
Speaker 1: cover and the incident occurs.

631
00:29:23,880 --> 00:29:26,320
Speaker 7: Yeah, you don't just go and buy one at Clark Rubber.

632
00:29:26,440 --> 00:29:31,440
Speaker 1: No, you don't it's a whole thing good intentions. Look

633
00:29:31,600 --> 00:29:33,840
Speaker 1: listen to next week because something goes wrong.

634
00:29:35,280 --> 00:29:37,920
Speaker 4: Queensland Government had gone to all the mines in Queensland

635
00:29:38,080 --> 00:29:40,600
Speaker 4: and said we want some money from you. Special meeting

636
00:29:40,600 --> 00:29:43,000
Speaker 4: of man Isser City Council. It was my idea for

637
00:29:43,080 --> 00:29:46,440
Speaker 4: the water slide, but it's not big enough.

638
00:29:47,640 --> 00:29:53,360
Speaker 6: Slippery Slope a true crime podcast about Mount iSER and

639
00:29:53,400 --> 00:29:59,600
Speaker 6: the missing water slide with Dave O'Neill and Breno.

640
00:30:02,760 --> 00:30:06,280
Speaker 1: Slippery Slope is written and hosted by Dave O'Neil and Bradoaks.

641
00:30:06,560 --> 00:30:10,320
Speaker 1: Original music created by Itinerant Productions. Check out their website.

642
00:30:10,360 --> 00:30:14,800
Speaker 1: There's some great stuff there. Ww dot Itinerantproduction dot com.

643
00:30:14,880 --> 00:30:18,160
Speaker 1: Editing by Courtney Carthy, published by Neely Media. Thank you

644
00:30:18,160 --> 00:30:19,920
Speaker 1: to all the guests involved in the making of Slippery

645
00:30:19,960 --> 00:30:23,240
Speaker 1: Slope in this episode, Kim Coglan, Daniel Say, Troy Railing,

646
00:30:23,520 --> 00:30:26,160
Speaker 1: Robcatter and Shae Donovan at the pool. Find more information

647
00:30:26,200 --> 00:30:28,400
Speaker 1: in the episode notes or at nearly dot com dot au.

648
00:30:28,880 --> 00:30:30,640
Speaker 1: And thanks to the people of man iSER