Taroom Shire Council, in the central Queensland highlands, and its local State Emergency Service units have developed a unique location marking system to protect the rural sector, residents and visitors.
SES Local Controller Alan Harris said his group used their Global Position Satellite (GPS) unit to pinpoint homesteads and cattle yards on outlying grazing properties plus visitor facilities at National Parks across the Shire’s 18,000 square kilometres. The GPS marking system will provide an accurate navigation point for rescue helicopters and other emergency services.
The latitude and longitude GPS readings are engraved by the SES on brass tags which are fixed on the spot. Another tag with the same details is placed next to the homestead telephone. In an emergency, a helicopter or ground service can be given precise map coordinates via a phone cal
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Alan Harris said Taroom’s new Rural Addressing Program has added further scope to the Shire’s emergency system.
“Under this program, Council recently installed yellow posts with black numbers on the road frontages of each property,” he said. “These locations were then added to our data base to provide a complete mantle of safety for the Shire area.”
SES units at Taroom and Wandoan developed the location system to suit isolated parts of the Shire, including rugged sandstone sections. This system will help identify tourist destinations such as Starkvale campsite in Expedition National Park, Isla Gorge National Park, Flagstone Road Historic Site at Flagstaff Hill, the Lake Murphy Conservation Park and Glebe Weir.
The sites will be marked with brass tags to assist the public and Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service rangers. The emergency marking system has been supplemented by satellite telephones, which the Taroom and Wandoan SES units purchased last year using a grant from the Jupiters Casino Community Benefit Fund.
For further information, contact John Jennings, telephone (07) 4627 3211.
