Any Cyclone Tracy veterans on AULRO

RonMcGr · 4th January 2008, 08:02 PM

Originally Posted by shorty943

We might have got drunk together Ron. Did you hit the very first day of trading in the pub? I think it was the first place in town to get a generator.

I did. I was the one who went back to ship, and got my guitar.

Shorty,

We stayed at Larrakeyah Barracks.
I can remember the diggers boozer very well, the back wall was missing and they had a huge bin down stairs, to through the empty stubbies in

Then the next day, we would take off in the trucks, holding on to shovels. Arrive at what was left of a house, open the refidgerator, stove and cupboards in the kitchen, see the maggots, smell the stink, throw up and keep shoveling..

I went back to Darwin in 1991 and could not believe the difference

No boats in the main street, no VW hanging out of the first floor balcony and no smell of rot and decay

After we left Darwin and returned to Brisbane, guess what followed...??

Cheers,

**V8Ian** · 4th January 2008, 08:12 PM

Originally Posted by RonMcGr

Shorty,

After we left Darwin and returned to Brisbane, guess what followed...??

Cheers,

I drowned an EJ on Zillmere Rd in that one Ron

**shorty943** · 4th January 2008, 08:15 PM

I'm trying to remember.

I've got it. Christmas in April.
That's when I finally got home for Christmas 74. April 75.
Down to Cerberus to the small boats crews, then swapped over to my fire training and NBCD. Made it into the unit. Less than 20 of us in the country.
And then back to the flight deck of Melbourne.

How about you?

Same old "hurry up and wait"?

**graceysdad** · 4th January 2008, 09:41 PM

I was only 7, dad was a copper, every year on xmas day they still publish his photo, very famous shot of my dad in uniform carry a suit case walking up the drive way to our pile of rubble

**cucinadio** · 4th January 2008, 10:04 PM

my father being in the raaf, we were there from 85 to 91,
but besides that i think to see, "if anyone ever goes for hols" the electricity poll out side of casurina high school will make what it was like a lot more poignant than any thing ive seen in a museum
it really brings sit home

cheers

**101RRS** · 4th January 2008, 10:22 PM

Arrived there the day after boxing day - I was on leave from HMAS Stalwart at the time and joined HMAS Vendetta when she arrived.

Never worked so hard in my life over the following months.

Garry

**cucinadio** · 4th January 2008, 10:37 PM

you boys should all be comended for all u did

big thanks from me yhea

cheers

**onemore** · 5th January 2008, 12:41 AM

I was also in the Navy, at HMAS Coonawarra when the cyclone came to town that christmas. I was a barman at the club, they really upset our christmas when they turned the grog off at 9 pm, we thought it was another false alarm, as we had been through two or three near misses in the months leading to Tracey, so we all thought "another false alarm".
I stayed on for another five months after, all I remember from that was the hard work cleaning up after. I do believe they are more prepared these days than we were then.
Happy new year to all.
Mike Moore

RonMcGr · 5th January 2008, 07:52 AM

Originally Posted by shorty943

I'm trying to remember.

I've got it. Christmas in April.
That's when I finally got home for Christmas 74. April 75.
Down to Cerberus to the small boats crews, then swapped over to my fire training and NBCD. Made it into the unit. Less than 20 of us in the country.
And then back to the flight deck of Melbourne.

How about you?

Same old "hurry up and wait"?

Breakfast Creek Hotel

Story Bridge

Yeronga

Cheers,

**shorty943** · 5th January 2008, 11:17 AM

Originally Posted by garrycol

Arrived there the day after boxing day - I was on leave from HMAS Stalwart at the time and joined HMAS Vendetta when she arrived.

Never worked so hard in my life over the following months.

Garry

We did spend some time together didn't we Garry!

Were you on "Stalwart" when the mail chopper fell out of the sky?

Skippy exercises did it for me. I was in Penguin between getting back from NQ till being driven down to the Adelaide airport by the local bloke 0800 Christmas morning. Back on ship for Christmas day. Working our butts out to load up for Darwin, we crossed the Gulf New Years Eve. All hell broke out that night as the engine room crane broke free from its mountings and smashed the Starboard Main Engine fuel lines.
There we were, one broken leg, going round and round in circles, in a re-energised Cyclone Tracy, in the Gulf.

life at sea never were dull.

We all finally got our Christmas leave at Easter time. Navy, Army, Airforce, Police, Firefighters, Ambo's. Darwins people. Volunteers.
And the Major General got a medal.

Hope your all right Darwin.
There wasn't much left when we got there, and the people we met in what was left in the street, we'd do it again for you in a second.

Thread: Any Cyclone Tracy veterans on AULRO

Thread Tools

Cyclone Tracey

Bookmarks

Bookmarks

Posting Permissions