It’s the wet season that just doesn’t know when to end …. with the Pacific Highway still closed in places due to water on the road, we now hear that the Birdsville Track is about to be cut off again.
The Cooper Creek punt is expected to be running again in just over a week as floodwaters make their way from Queensland.
“It has started arriving here,” tour operator Peter Weir told the ABC. It’s rising gradually … about 50mm a day.”
He says Lake Killamperpunna is nearly full and water should reach the crossing in just over a week.
“It hasn’t quite reached the road yet but it’s given us quite a bit more water here in the ferry channel,” he said. “At the moment the ferry’s back floating again, so it’s a gradual rise and it’s still rising at the moment and it’ll keep rising for quite a while.”
Alan Morris from the Transport Department says the punt is ready to go as soon as the water crosses the Birdsville Track.
“We’ll be responding quite quickly to ensure that it causes minimal disruption to the travelling public,” he told the ABC. “Everything is ready to go, we’ve had the engine serviced and we’ve looked at the accommodation and vehicles etc, so as soon as the water crosses the road we’ll get that underway.”
The punt has also been extended so it can carry vehicles with campervans.
