Mount Isa held its inaugural veterans day service at the Cenotaph. The day commemorated all ex-servicepeople who have served in modern-day conflicts and peacekeeping operations. Previously, the RSL Sub-branch held a Vietnam Veterans' Day ceremony to commemorate the battle of Long Tan. But the RSL wanted to make it more inclusive of all who served in the ADF since 1945 including Korea, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Gulf wars, Iraq, Afghanistan and East Timor. Mayor Danielle Slade said the day acknowledged service in all conflicts since the Second World War as well as peace keeping and peace making operations.
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For 25 years there was one place to go if you wanted a souvenir of your visit to Mount Isa. That was the Thingodonta's Den which celebrated its quarter century earlier this year, located first at Outback at Isa, then at West St. Sadly owner Toni Neville decided to call it a day. Ms Neville started the shop with her late husband David when Outback at Isa first began in the mid 90s. At the time the facility was just called the Riversleigh Fossil Centre and the Nevilles had to choose a name for their shop that fitted in with the fossil vibe. They chose the memorable name thingodontas, named for the marsupial Yalkaparidon coheni (Cohen's Thingodonta) found at Riversleigh World Heritage Area.
After a 12 month absence the Multicultural Festival returned to Mount Isa and people voted with their feet with a huge turnout at the Good Shepherd Catholic Church. Thousands enjoyed the feast of senses with the sights and sounds of colourful musical performances matched by the smells and tastes of some of the world's best cuisine on sale, all washed down with Irish Club Guinness. Father Mick Lowcock said this was the 24th Multicultural festival and this year's theme is South Asia celebrating the people and culture of India, Pakistan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Sri Lanka, Maldives, Bhutan and Myanmar (Burma).
Visitors to the Mount Isa Underground Hospital could have been forgiven for thinking they had stumbled on to the set of a Second World War movie in September. The Museum is itself a historic artifact of that war so today it had the most appropriate of visitors bringing three war vehicles including an army ambulance, all 80 years old or more.. Army ambulance owner Tracy Vadjnal, from Newcastle NSW, said they were part of a much larger group who take part in a long distance drive called "Back to the Track".
A formidable new local partnership has taken over the Sunset Top Tourist Park in Mount Isa. The park has become the first locally-owned tourist park in the city after Kylie Rixon and Michelle Low Mow took over the keys last week. They bring decades of local tourism expertise with Ms Rixon having worked at Outback at Isa while Ms Low Mow ran Adels Grove for many years and both have been heavily involved with the Mount Isa Tourism Association. Ms Rixon has also managed the Sunset park in recent months until becoming part owner in the new partnership and when the previous owners decided it was time to sell, the two ladies jumped in.
The locations of the latest series of Australian Survivor have been hailed as the real star of the show. The latest series has away from Fiji and Samoa in favour of the red dirt of Cloncurry and series maker Endemol has been delighted with the effect. Keely Sonntag, Executive Producer, Endemol Shine Australia said that visually the locations, wildlife, sunrises and sunsets were stunning and unlike anything they'd used before. "The Cloncurry outback added a whole other level of interest and spectacle that could never be achieved overseas," Ms Sonntag said. "We had the space and facilities to produce one of the largest reality shows in Australia, the weather was ideal for our shoot period, and the local crew were extremely talented and hard-working."
A vanadium mine in the North West will pioneer production of a globally sought-after new economy mineral, supporting up to 400 regional jobs. Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk, Resources Minister Scott Stewart and Multicom Resources' CEO Shaun McCarthy jointly announced the go-ahead for the $250 million Saint Elmo mine, near Julia Creek.
A year after the loss of the Gulf Livestock 1 ship in the South China Sea, families of the missing are still no closer to finding out what happened to their loved ones. The ship, with 25-year-old Mount Isa vet Lukas Orda aboard, went missing off the coast of Japan in a typhoon on Wednesday September 2, 2020. The ship was transporting cattle from New Zealand to China in September 2020 when it capsized in rough seas. Only two Filipinos of the 43 crew members survived and the rest are still missing had 43 crew members on board, including Lukas Orda among the two Australians.
Mount Isa stopped to remember fallen police officers on Police Remembrance Day, September 29. Queensland Police Deputy Commissioner Paul Taylor joined local officersat the Mount Isa Catholic Church for a service officiated by police chaplain Father Mick Lowcock. He paid tribute to Snr Const Dave Masters who lost his life in June responding to a suspected stolen vehicle when he was struck on the Bruce Highway at Burpengary, north of Brisbane.
Mount Isa City Council have started the process of potential development of the former Harvey Norman site.The site on the corner of Miles and Grace St has been abandoned since it was destroyed by fire in 2017 and then purchased by Council in 2019 and it was still "under review" in 2020. However Council has now engaged consultants engaged to develop two concept designs for a multi-use community space, to be known as Centennial Place. Urban design and landscape architecture consultants Tract have started the process of developing the concept designs, with three company representatives visiting Mount Isa earlier this month for initial key stakeholder engagement and information gathering, and site inspections.
Derek Barry
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
