GOVERNOR General Sir Peter Cosgrove made a flying visit to Innisfail at the weekend where he reacquainted friendships formed 10 years ago during the region’s recovery from tropical Cyclone Larry.
Sir Cosgrove and his wife Lady Cosgrove were special guests at the region’s premier food event, the Feast of the Senses Market Extravaganza.
Thousands of people filled Innisfail’s central business district to buy, eat and enjoy the region’s rare and exotic fruits, locally grown produce and handmade wares. The day was the finale for the 10-day festival.
“I think they are like the people of the pioneering spirit,” Sir Cosgrove told the North Queensland Register. “They know they are living in a beautiful part of Australia and they also know that nature – often their friend – can sometimes be their adversary.
“They have to be tough to ensure they are still there, when the natural event has passed by.
“These are tough people with hearts as big as all our doors.”
Sir Cosgrove likened the aftermath of TC Larry with images following TC Tracy which decimated Darwin in 1974.
“It was just shocking,” Sir Cosgrove said. “I recalled my vision of Darwin after Cyclone Tracy in 1974 and this looked eerily similar. Roofs off, streets blocked and people wandering around looking at the wreckage of their homes.
“Within days of course people said this is not going to defeat us.
“There was a spirit in the town and in the region which was so inspirational.
“People said okay where do we start and the answer was one step at a time.
“We clear the roads, we get the power back on and we ensure people can start to go back to work. This process took a long while.”
Sir Cosgrove, who lived in Innisfail for seven months as part of the recovery efforts, said Innisfail had re-established itself since the natural disasters and learnt lessons along the way.
“This is a town celebrating, doing what it loves to do with huge community events,” Sir Cosgrove said.
“Obviously it didn’t happen in 2006 but progressively this town has had cause to celebrate as the economy continues to burn and they are really back into the beautiful part of far north Queensland that they grew up in.
“This community in far north Queensland knows cyclones better than any other part of the population so for some they re-learnt lessons.
“After (cyclone) Yasi the damage was constrained and people had learnt lessons and the survival of buildings and industry was commensurably a lot higher.”
