1
00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:04,040
Speaker 1: And as those floodwaters slowly received, the extent of damage

2
00:00:04,040 --> 00:00:07,640
Speaker 1: to logistics becomes known. And of course yesterday we did

3
00:00:07,680 --> 00:00:10,040
Speaker 1: some well, we did see some of that damage to

4
00:00:10,119 --> 00:00:12,799
Speaker 1: our roads. Now joining us on the line is the

5
00:00:12,880 --> 00:00:17,680
Speaker 1: head of the Anti Road Transport Association, Louise Belacho.

6
00:00:17,800 --> 00:00:21,640
Speaker 2: Good morning, Louise, Good morning, Katie. We talk again, We

7
00:00:21,720 --> 00:00:22,239
Speaker 2: talk again.

8
00:00:22,360 --> 00:00:24,200
Speaker 1: We seem to it this time of the year. But

9
00:00:24,239 --> 00:00:27,160
Speaker 1: I tell you what, It's been an exceptional wet season

10
00:00:27,200 --> 00:00:29,960
Speaker 1: and it's wreaking havoc around the place, isn't it.

11
00:00:31,120 --> 00:00:34,040
Speaker 2: Yeah, it doesn't seem like it's going to resolve today either.

12
00:00:34,280 --> 00:00:39,479
Speaker 1: No, So tell me in terms of you know, the damage.

13
00:00:39,520 --> 00:00:41,479
Speaker 1: I guess that we're seeing to our roads. What your

14
00:00:41,520 --> 00:00:45,880
Speaker 1: members are telling you, what are they saying at this point.

15
00:00:45,920 --> 00:00:48,239
Speaker 2: It's going to be an expensive repair job for the

16
00:00:48,280 --> 00:00:48,880
Speaker 2: dry season.

17
00:00:50,560 --> 00:00:52,800
Speaker 1: I bet it will be. And where are we, like,

18
00:00:52,920 --> 00:00:56,800
Speaker 1: where are we seeing closures and what kind of impact

19
00:00:56,880 --> 00:00:59,840
Speaker 1: is it having on our goods being delivered at this point?

20
00:01:01,040 --> 00:01:04,360
Speaker 2: Well, you're probably aware of the detour that was that

21
00:01:04,440 --> 00:01:07,080
Speaker 2: forced the closure of the Stuart Highway again at around

22
00:01:07,120 --> 00:01:12,720
Speaker 2: eight o'clock last night. So the road was reopened yes

23
00:01:12,840 --> 00:01:15,440
Speaker 2: after at about four and we're very grateful for that,

24
00:01:15,600 --> 00:01:17,520
Speaker 2: so that the all the trucks that had been at

25
00:01:17,520 --> 00:01:23,000
Speaker 2: Madaranka were able to get through Catherine, but unfortunately two

26
00:01:23,080 --> 00:01:27,679
Speaker 2: trucks ended up getting bobbed on the detour, which is

27
00:01:27,680 --> 00:01:32,679
Speaker 2: just seven kilometers south of town, and so that closed

28
00:01:32,680 --> 00:01:34,640
Speaker 2: the road again. So those trucks that have been at

29
00:01:34,720 --> 00:01:40,360
Speaker 2: daily Waters and holding back from Maderancha ended up being

30
00:01:40,400 --> 00:01:45,039
Speaker 2: stuck still and they're still waiting for the announcement for

31
00:01:45,200 --> 00:01:49,880
Speaker 2: the Stewart Highway to reopen there. Unfortunately, so we had

32
00:01:49,920 --> 00:01:53,320
Speaker 2: trucks at left dar On Souf to Theon even with

33
00:01:53,440 --> 00:01:59,600
Speaker 2: the Elizabeth River Bridge rising to get going and unfortunately

34
00:01:59,680 --> 00:02:02,600
Speaker 2: some of the for a lot of them are stuck

35
00:02:02,680 --> 00:02:07,440
Speaker 2: in Katherine at the OTR assembly area there.

36
00:02:07,680 --> 00:02:10,520
Speaker 1: Yeah, right, so what so I guess waiting for that

37
00:02:11,240 --> 00:02:13,760
Speaker 1: for the Stuart Highway to reopen a lot. Do we

38
00:02:13,840 --> 00:02:15,320
Speaker 1: have any idea how long that may be?

39
00:02:16,440 --> 00:02:23,520
Speaker 2: No, I think obviously the Civil Works contractor was hard

40
00:02:23,560 --> 00:02:28,680
Speaker 2: at it last night getting the trucks out, which is unfortunate.

41
00:02:28,760 --> 00:02:32,120
Speaker 2: A minute, that's just it is unfortunate, but it also

42
00:02:32,160 --> 00:02:37,880
Speaker 2: speaks to the Northern Tertory government getting the tendering process right.

43
00:02:38,240 --> 00:02:42,160
Speaker 2: We've for many, many years urged more of our tenders

44
00:02:42,200 --> 00:02:44,560
Speaker 2: to be released so that everyone's ready to go at

45
00:02:44,560 --> 00:02:47,320
Speaker 2: the end of the wet season, rather than letting a

46
00:02:47,360 --> 00:02:50,640
Speaker 2: tender in December or January and then forcing them to

47
00:02:50,680 --> 00:02:54,000
Speaker 2: start during the wet season. It's just it's silly. We

48
00:02:54,000 --> 00:02:58,640
Speaker 2: shouldn't have those sorts of detours on the main national

49
00:02:58,720 --> 00:03:02,080
Speaker 2: highway network during the wet season. They should be all stopped.

50
00:03:02,520 --> 00:03:04,840
Speaker 1: Yeah, it's a fair point. It's a very very fair

51
00:03:04,880 --> 00:03:06,760
Speaker 1: point to make, I think at this point in time,

52
00:03:06,800 --> 00:03:09,480
Speaker 1: particularly when people are now worried about, you know, whether

53
00:03:09,480 --> 00:03:11,240
Speaker 1: they're going to be able to get goods, whether we're

54
00:03:11,240 --> 00:03:13,280
Speaker 1: going to be able to see food back on the

55
00:03:13,320 --> 00:03:15,080
Speaker 1: supermarket shelves.

56
00:03:15,480 --> 00:03:19,880
Speaker 2: Yes. Yeah, well again, it was fantastic news at four

57
00:03:19,919 --> 00:03:23,239
Speaker 2: o'clock and then very sad news at eight pm last night.

58
00:03:23,400 --> 00:03:26,480
Speaker 2: And I mean everyone does also need to appreciate the

59
00:03:26,639 --> 00:03:30,120
Speaker 2: truckies that are just trying to do their job. Sometimes

60
00:03:30,200 --> 00:03:34,080
Speaker 2: those things are overlooked. The message I really was hoping

61
00:03:34,160 --> 00:03:39,440
Speaker 2: to ensure everyone understands that we said and learned very

62
00:03:39,440 --> 00:03:43,440
Speaker 2: big lessons during COVID early was that all fraight is essential,

63
00:03:43,960 --> 00:03:46,960
Speaker 2: So trying to pay God and to say perishables need

64
00:03:46,960 --> 00:03:50,880
Speaker 2: to come first. We fully understand they've all got expiry

65
00:03:50,960 --> 00:03:56,360
Speaker 2: limits your blueberries and your raspberries, etc. But you know,

66
00:03:56,640 --> 00:04:00,440
Speaker 2: if on that fate that was stuck yesterday, was you know,

67
00:04:00,600 --> 00:04:05,120
Speaker 2: a peace for the Darwin River Dam pump, for example,

68
00:04:05,400 --> 00:04:09,560
Speaker 2: that becomes a essential and we we learned that lesson that.

69
00:04:09,680 --> 00:04:12,960
Speaker 2: You know, there's medical supplies or there's particular pieces of

70
00:04:13,000 --> 00:04:15,520
Speaker 2: equipment that has a knock on effect to other things

71
00:04:15,520 --> 00:04:20,919
Speaker 2: that then become highly critical. So a phrase is essential,

72
00:04:21,360 --> 00:04:24,279
Speaker 2: roads opened. Everyone needs to be able to just get

73
00:04:24,320 --> 00:04:25,039
Speaker 2: on with their job.

74
00:04:25,279 --> 00:04:27,240
Speaker 1: Spot on. So, Louise, did you just say that there

75
00:04:27,279 --> 00:04:30,120
Speaker 1: was a part for the pump for the Darwinridam or

76
00:04:30,160 --> 00:04:33,440
Speaker 1: you said if there was, I was gonna say, ship,

77
00:04:33,520 --> 00:04:35,600
Speaker 1: we better get that across the line as quickly as

78
00:04:35,640 --> 00:04:41,920
Speaker 1: weekend on the next two Yeah, no use spot on,

79
00:04:42,040 --> 00:04:44,520
Speaker 1: And we will talk more about the Darwen Riverdam after eleven.

80
00:04:44,560 --> 00:04:47,280
Speaker 1: But Louise, what is that like, what's the biggest concern

81
00:04:47,400 --> 00:04:49,880
Speaker 1: for you for the next couple of days? And and

82
00:04:50,920 --> 00:04:53,119
Speaker 1: you know, I guess to everybody out there listening this morning,

83
00:04:53,160 --> 00:04:55,320
Speaker 1: they're thinking about it probably you know, we all think

84
00:04:55,360 --> 00:04:57,880
Speaker 1: about these things from a selfish sort of perspective, wanting

85
00:04:57,920 --> 00:05:00,600
Speaker 1: to make sure we're able to get gross from et cetera.

86
00:05:00,680 --> 00:05:02,479
Speaker 1: But what are the biggest concerns for you over the

87
00:05:02,480 --> 00:05:05,000
Speaker 1: next couple of days and when do you you know,

88
00:05:05,080 --> 00:05:06,800
Speaker 1: when do you think we'll see things start to go

89
00:05:06,880 --> 00:05:08,799
Speaker 1: back to a more normal scenario.

90
00:05:09,800 --> 00:05:12,000
Speaker 2: Yeah, I guess it depends on what the bomb is

91
00:05:12,040 --> 00:05:15,640
Speaker 2: telling us about weather, the fact that the rail has

92
00:05:15,680 --> 00:05:20,880
Speaker 2: been operational, you know, since Sunday night, coming in yesterday morning,

93
00:05:20,880 --> 00:05:25,120
Speaker 2: and again you say that was a positive because obviously

94
00:05:25,120 --> 00:05:28,880
Speaker 2: there's stuff that goes on to the rail that you

95
00:05:28,920 --> 00:05:32,200
Speaker 2: know is big. That will mean that we're not going

96
00:05:32,240 --> 00:05:36,760
Speaker 2: to starve in Darwin. But the freight that is on

97
00:05:36,880 --> 00:05:40,240
Speaker 2: the trucks is the just in time freate, a lot

98
00:05:40,279 --> 00:05:43,680
Speaker 2: of it and as I said, the perishable. So we

99
00:05:43,760 --> 00:05:47,240
Speaker 2: will definitely see some impact on our fruit and veggies,

100
00:05:47,600 --> 00:05:50,880
Speaker 2: but hopefully some of the biggest staple items should be

101
00:05:51,200 --> 00:05:54,640
Speaker 2: fine at the moment. But again, it just speaks to

102
00:05:54,839 --> 00:05:59,120
Speaker 2: the fragility of our supply chain, Katie.

103
00:05:58,960 --> 00:06:01,120
Speaker 1: It really does. Does you know the fact that every

104
00:06:01,200 --> 00:06:03,039
Speaker 1: year just about you and I are talking about this,

105
00:06:03,160 --> 00:06:05,360
Speaker 1: unless we don't have a very wet, wet season like

106
00:06:05,400 --> 00:06:07,960
Speaker 1: we did last year just goes to show you that

107
00:06:08,040 --> 00:06:09,520
Speaker 1: it is very fragile.

108
00:06:09,560 --> 00:06:13,359
Speaker 2: Indeed, yes, yes, for sure. And as I said, the

109
00:06:13,360 --> 00:06:17,520
Speaker 2: most important thing that we're hoping government is doing is

110
00:06:17,920 --> 00:06:22,560
Speaker 2: putting in repairs and maintenance and upgrades into the budget.

111
00:06:22,920 --> 00:06:25,960
Speaker 2: So there will be you know, a considerable portion of

112
00:06:26,000 --> 00:06:29,560
Speaker 2: our network that will need to be you know, fixed

113
00:06:29,640 --> 00:06:34,640
Speaker 2: up and strengthened. But also our unsealed network. We don't

114
00:06:34,640 --> 00:06:38,719
Speaker 2: want to be seeing our dirt roads not opening before

115
00:06:38,760 --> 00:06:40,800
Speaker 2: the end of July because that makes it a very

116
00:06:40,800 --> 00:06:44,159
Speaker 2: small window to get into communities to actually get other

117
00:06:44,200 --> 00:06:47,400
Speaker 2: work like construction materials in and you know if you're

118
00:06:47,400 --> 00:06:51,279
Speaker 2: building houses, et cetera. So you know it's twofold. One

119
00:06:51,320 --> 00:06:53,480
Speaker 2: is the National Highway network will need a lot of

120
00:06:53,520 --> 00:06:58,240
Speaker 2: repairs because potholes are everywhere, but also the unsealed road

121
00:06:58,279 --> 00:07:00,919
Speaker 2: network will need a lot of attention as well. And

122
00:07:01,080 --> 00:07:03,039
Speaker 2: all of those things cost money. Yep.

123
00:07:03,640 --> 00:07:05,080
Speaker 1: Yeah, we've got to make sure that we find some

124
00:07:05,120 --> 00:07:07,279
Speaker 1: money in the budget for those things because as we

125
00:07:07,360 --> 00:07:12,800
Speaker 1: are seeing, they are absolutely essential. Louise Belato, I always

126
00:07:12,840 --> 00:07:15,200
Speaker 1: appreciate your time. Thank you very much for having a

127
00:07:15,280 --> 00:07:16,240
Speaker 1: chat with us this morning.

128
00:07:17,360 --> 00:07:18,080
Speaker 2: Thank you, Katie.

129
00:07:18,200 --> 00:07:18,840
Speaker 1: Thank you