The expo is hoped to become a regular fixture for Mount Isa and will showcase new technologies to assist mobility and independence for community members who are blind or vision impaired.  These include GPS locators, Ultracanes, and talking compasses, which can assist with keeping users safe by increasing their awareness when navigating in unfamiliar environments.

A focus of the expo will be raising awareness of drivers within the community to exercise greater caution and look for visual cues like a Guide Dog or White Cane to help identify vision impaired pedestrians. 

This year’s focus follows the release of alarming statistics from a Guide Dogs Queensland client survey in 2013 that revealed 50 per cent of Queenslanders who are blind or vision impaired had a near miss with a vehicle over the past five years while trying to cross the road. It also revealed one in 12 Queenslanders who are blind or vision impaired had been struck by a vehicle during the past five years while trying to cross the road

The expo will be held from 10am to 1pm today at the Community Rehab Hall, Mount Isa Centre for Rural & Remote Health (MICRRH) Main Building, James Cook University, 100 Joan Street, Mount Isa.

The expo is for people who are blind or vision impaired, their families and members of the community wanting assistance.

There will also be an opportunity to talk with instructors about applying for a Guide Dog.