mac'ella Posted December 31, 2010 Share Posted December 31, 2010 Yes Katrina ''bad choice of words'' people had plenty of time to act and info but there was a fair bit of complacency,the previous floods were largely a result of water moving down the system and I think as a lot of the peaks didnt eventuate some people didnt react this time,with,these floods there was a larger area affected in a shorter time which left less evacuation areas and stretched the rescue services as well,there were probably other factors such as jobs etc which may have stopped them getting out early,who knows? A few years ago there was a massive storm predicted to hit sydney everything was on standby but then a slight change in weather patterns kept it out to sea, you should have heard the ridicule dished out then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KOE Posted December 31, 2010 Share Posted December 31, 2010 All I am going to say on the subject is they all had plenty of warning, I would have had my animals elsewhere by the time the water hit. My Aunt was in cyclone Tracey and when she evacuated with her 6 kids the also took their small dog she wrapped it in a shawl kept her covered and pretended she was a baby. Because their was no way she was leaving her behind either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mita Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 Just heard on ABC Radio that facilities for pets is being included in the shelter set up for humans at the University of Central Qld campus in Rockhampton. The word is going out, tho', that it'd help if people in safe areas of the city & nearby, would offer foster-care, too, because the numbers could be large. And people are determined to save their pets. They gave the example of an elderly lady, in one of the severely flooded streets, who refused point blank to be evacuated until she could be assured that there'd be safety for her 2 cats & 1 dog. Also said the Rocky airport will be closed to all air traffic, except that connected with the emergency. People representing the main emergency services & animal management and welfare, should get sent off to the US to study at first-hand the disaster plans that each county has to keep in place (& which includes pets & animals). As other posters have said, there's a huge amount that can be learned from these emergencies. And could be put in place earlier in future events. When the terrible storm hit all our surrounding suburbs a couple of years back, there was so little already in place (except for the SES & emergency services). And conditions made it hard to 'invent' stuff on the spot. Like we were happy to lend dog/cat crates or offer to foster. Phoned the vet & asked did she know of anyone in need. But she was flat out treating animals as other vet clinic in the area was wiped out. After a couple of days, a Church offered a hall as a 'meeting' place for people in need. But roads across were blocked & only access was for service vehicles. So it would have helped if there was a one-stop-approved contact point for animal care. When offers of help could eventually kick in, people were marvellous. It could all have been slotted into an existing plan, tho'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paptacular! Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 All I am going to say on the subject is they all had plenty of warning, I would have had my animals elsewhere by the time the water hit.My Aunt was in cyclone Tracey and when she evacuated with her 6 kids the also took their small dog she wrapped it in a shawl kept her covered and pretended she was a baby. Because their was no way she was leaving her behind either. I've heard stories like this too. An exhibitor here was unable to take her Dobe with her, and she saw little dogs being 'smuggled' to safety. This is why she now has chihuahuas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asalei Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 (edited) I was in tears again watching the news tonight, some south african girl went back to her house and found her house mates dog sitting on a mattress out the front of their house. I'm sad because this poor dog was left behind, but happy because it's alive and so excited to see his mates. They took him back with them on the boat as the water is still about waist high. I did hear somewhere (I think it was Rockhampton) that the RSPCA had set up a shelter, but there was limited space and it was filling up fast. Edited January 1, 2011 by ~Erin~ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mortonplace Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 (edited) BUt youd expect people with cats to have the carry cage things for them and expect people with dogs to have leads. And with all the stories that came out of the US where people went back by dodging official closures you'd think they would have learnt. What about the Vic bushfires? obviously those who got out took their animals with them (unless they got away from the owners somehow) to the emergency centres - didnt seem to be too many problems there. l was under threat for 2 weeks in them fires,belive me it wasnt easy and i had to find places for some of my dogs. lt was that bad that the local boarding kennels would take 2 of my dogs. lm just getting ready to reloate this time dog float tent gennybrought just for the fire season l didnt even have a toe bar at that time so dogs in car and plenty of trips. As long as l get enough warning this time lt got to the stage the safest place was down the boat ramp. People,cats,dogs,other pets cars,boats and extras Got a bit crapped at times Sad for the people that had to leave there babys behind. Edited January 1, 2011 by mortonplace Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mortonplace Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 All I am going to say on the subject is they all had plenty of warning, I would have had my animals elsewhere by the time the water hit.My Aunt was in cyclone Tracey and when she evacuated with her 6 kids the also took their small dog she wrapped it in a shawl kept her covered and pretended she was a baby. Because their was no way she was leaving her behind either. I've heard stories like this too. An exhibitor here was unable to take her Dobe with her, and she saw little dogs being 'smuggled' to safety. This is why she now has chihuahuas. Yes a dobe would be hard to wrap and hide That was the bigest drama l had was with my old shep and doberman The others are small Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shells Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 I can understand some people particularly with families, will have higher priorities than their pets. It's a personal decision. I have human kids and I have my fur kids - they are just as important and I wouldnt leave them behind. If push came to shove I would send the kids with DH and I would stay with the dogs. Fire is our main issue where we live and in any case I wouldnt stay to defend our home (like I know is alot of peoples choices) I would evacuate ASAP. Our house is replaceable our family isnt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cowanbree Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 It is easy to become complacent and think it would never happen to you but you just never know how you would react. I will be honest and say I am one of those people. A few years back we had a terrible storm, I was surrounded by a huge forest with trees 2-3 times the height of my house crashing down all night and power lines crossing and sparking. It was terrifying and made worse by the fact that I didn't know what to do. As silly as it seems now I didn't want to disturb anyone in the middle of the night and while there were plenty of people who would have taken me in I couldn't even begin to think how I would accommodate all my pets. Several times I had them all crammed in the van and then the wind would die down and I would think it is going to stop. The next day it did stop and over 100 trees were down and by some miracle none hit my house which was a great result but I made the wrong choice and should have gotten out. Since then I have made some plans, crates are now in the van permanently and I know exactly what I would do. They would still be 3 high to fit in the one vehicle but they would be fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ozjen Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 I've just got back online. I got flooded out on Monday evening. The water came up very fast, I had about 1.5 hrs to get out. No warnings, help, phone calls from authorities etc. No info as to whether it was expected to get worse...My house sits lower than the road, so the first thing I did was get the ute up onto the road. Then began wading back and forth with crates, some food, clothes, dog gear and finally the 5 dogs (all little ones, thank goodness). It was waist high when I left. Saw a snake in the water as I waded out. EEK! The road was cut in both directions, but I managed to get to some higher ground a bit further down the road and camped in the ute there the first night. Thank god I had a ute not a car, because the water was at .6m when I drove through. Staying at a friends now - 5 dogs living in her bathroom!!!. Got back to my house yesterday arvo, water went through at .5m. It's pretty trashed. Starting the cleanup today. Truck arriving at 9am to start hauling out all the wrecked stuff. So sorry you are in this situation Gallamph, glad you and your furkids are okay. *HUGS* Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tdierikx Posted January 1, 2011 Share Posted January 1, 2011 No negotiation - my babies leave with me, or I don't leave. I will sit on the roof and have food dropped to me before I leave my furkids to fend for themselves in a disaster. T. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Staranais Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 It's a hard call. I would be very reluctant to evacuate without my dog. I would put myself into considerable danger to keep her safe. But, I can't expect other people to risk their lives for my dog either. I guess it would be my responsibility to evacuate her as early as possible so no one had to make that decision. Reminds me of when I was talking to some helicopter guys about doing SAR training with my malinois girl. They said that if the dog went uncontrollably apeshit in mid air and became a danger by distracting the pilot (some dogs react very strangely to helicopters), they would throw the dog out the door. Their primary responsibility was to keep the aircraft & passengers safe, not to keep the dog safe, so their priorities were very different to mine! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
k9angel Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 I could never leave mine behind. I was wondering what happened to the pets when they say people were evacuated. I never knew you had to leave them behind though. Makes me feel sick to the stomach too. I wonder how many were left behind with these floods? ;) Taken from Yahoo Residents are evacuating the Queensland coastal city of Rockhampton in darkness amid fears that fast-approaching floodwaters could affect thousands of properties. Rockhampton Mayor Brad Carter said about 20 people had registered at an evacuation centre on Saturday night and rescue crews were continuing to help people leave their homes, some via boats in areas where minor flooding has already struck. "They are actually happening tonight. I hope that not too many people are trying to do this in the dark," he said. Buses are also being used to ferry people north to Central Queensland University's sports centre where the evacuation centre has been set up, catering for 1200. The Fitzroy River, which divides the city, is expected to reach nine metres on Monday, the Bureau of Meteorolgoy predicts, but Mr Carter said it could happen as early as Sunday. "In many ways, it is a disaster of biblical proportions," Queensland State Treasurer Andrew Fraser told reporters in flood-hit Bundaberg. Floodwaters are expected to peak at up to 9.4 metres on Wednesday. "The best way to describe it is a raging torrent of water, it's got a tremendous pace," Mr Carter said of the river. "That water is starting to come up quite high and there has been a significant number of voluntary evacuations in the past couple of days," he told AAP. It is not known how many people have evacuated and may be staying with friends and relatives, Mr Carter said. "It's a painful wait and see, watch the waters rise," he said of the situation. "They are starting to rise in the residential areas with a bit more speed, there will be houses inundated, about 400." Another 4000 properties, including commercial properties and vacant blocks of land, could also be affected. :D :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baby Dragon Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 The evac centre in Rockhampton has a place for pets Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ker Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 I couldn't leave my pets. I'd send my kids off with family and get my pets out. My sister had a fire near her not too long ago. She packed up her 2 kids, newf, 6 cats and 2 rabbits and brought them all to my place lol. Was a bit cramped but we managed! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dog_Horse_Girl Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 The evac centre in Rockhampton has a place for pets Excellent and so it should. ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KatrinaM Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 Doubt there will be much capacity for big dogs though. Emerald had facilities but friends were told to take their big dogs home to their inundated house as large dogs werent welcome. They have raised floored kennels, unlike many others their dogs have survived. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
daisygirl Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 We just got home from Bundaberg after 9 days up there. We were lucky to be at Moore Park which is about 20kms away and therefore not affected by any of the flooding except being cut off from Bundy and the rest of the outside world for 36hrs. The local ABC radio had lots of interviews and one of the things mentioned was that they were looking for crates for animals so they could be evacuated. Apparently they must be in a crate to go in a helicopter. Also the interview on the radio today said that there is no actual RSPCA shelter in Rockhampton and the closest is Townsville. The animals in Rockhampton are looked after by foster carers when they come into care and its called a "virtual" RSPCA. I assume therefore that they have limited staff available in Rockhampton. As we were on holidays we didnt have crates with us but certainly if we were ever in any danger of the floods we would have packed up and got out of there as we had about 4 hours warning when the road into town was going to be cut. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KOE Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 (edited) A lot of these places have had fair warning what was coming so really there is no excuse. NOt like a lot of the fires where there was no warning. Edited January 2, 2011 by KOE Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baby Dragon Posted January 2, 2011 Share Posted January 2, 2011 Here's some info about the Rockhampton evac centre allowing pets. http://www.themorningbulletin.com.au/story...-to-rescue-cat/ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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