A weekly re-cap of the events that have made news in Cairns over the past week.

Monday April 1, 2002 59th Edition

The news of the Queen Mothers death added a sad tinge to the Easter break for many people in Cairns. The Queen Mother was well liked throughout Australia and the recent visit by the Queen and Prince Phillip made her death somehow more impacting.

Cairns shares grief in the death of the Queen Mother
The recent visit by the Queen made the sudden death of the Queen Mother all the more real for residents of Cairns. The Royal Family has a strong following in Far North Queensland and there are expected to be thousands of mourners attending services across the region in the coming weeks.

Cairns celebrates Easter in a safe manner
There were no road fatalities in Cairns over the Easter break, with police applauding drivers for slowing down and not drink driving. The national toll stands at 22 with several people still in critical condition in Sydney. The Easter period is traditionally one of the worst for road accidents and even though the national toll is still too high, it is lower than in previous years.

Best selling Cairns author releases second book
Andrew Griffiths has become well known following the success of his first book, "101 Ways to Market Your Business". This title has sold over 25,000 copies in its first year of publication, even being translated into Chinese. Mr Griffiths has had his second book released this week. The title of the new book is "101 Survival Tips for Your Business".

The Sydney based publishers, Allen & Unwin, are expecting a very positive future for this book, with initial sales being very strong. The prolific author is in the process of putting the finishing touches on his third book, "101 Ways to Really Satisfy Your Customers", which is due for publication in September this year. Mr Griffiths lives permanently in Cairns where he is a Director of a local marketing and public relations company.

www.andrewgriffiths.com.au

Ian Thorpe heads to Japan to drum up business
Olympic gold medallist and swimming legend, Ian Thorpe has started work promoting Australia as a holiday destination to people in Japan. Ian Thorpe is very well known in Japan, a nation that follows swimming and general sporting events very closely. In Japan Ian Thorpe is a national celebrity making him a good choice as an ambassador for Australia.

Port Douglas and The Atherton Tabelelands have an Easter boost
Some of the areas surrounding Cairns have been feeling the effects of a sluggish tourism industry in past months. Reports from these areas indicate that business has picked up over Easter with many Cairns residents choosing to get out and about the region over the holiday period. The school holidays are normally busy, especially in Port Douglas, with local businesses hoping that the upward trend will continue in the coming months.

Air New Zealand start second weekly flight this week
Air New Zealand has commenced their second weekly flight between Cairns and Auckland this week. The extra flight provides capacity for another 12,500 seats into Cairns and it provides greater flexibility for shorter holidays. Cairns is a popular destination for New Zealanders and the new flights is expected to provide a boost for tourism in both directions.

Australian Airlines - final confirmation this week
Cairns businesses are waiting in anticipation this week for the final confirmation from QANTAS that Australian Airlines will be going ahead and that it will be based in Cairns. In recent weeks there has been some doubt due to the final collapse of ANSETT and general uncertainty in the aviation industry in general.

Waterfront lagoon to start next month
Work on the new Cairns Esplanade waterfront lagoon and recreation area is set to begin this month. The contractors have been announced and all works are to be completed by January 2003. A total of seven companies tendered for the project with Seymour White winning the bid. Cairns Mayor, Kevin Byrne, stated that the tenders were extremely close, which is surprising for a project of this size.