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

Monday June 12, 2001 18th Edition

Its back to work after a long weekend in Cairns which is always a bit of a battle. This week saw a number of rain induced traffic accidents but overall it was fairly quiet in and around the City. The tourist season has begun in full flight with arrival numbers showing strong continued growth. The weather in Cairns is simply perfect at this time of year and for the next four to five months (apart from the odd wet day). All in all it is a great time to live in the tropics.

Surveillance at Cairns airport boosted
Cairns Airport will be the first airport in Australia where every piece of luggage arriving internationally will be X-rayed. The aim of this exercise is to locate any organic foodstuffs or unwanted pests. An extra 36 quarantine staff will be employed between the airport and the seaport (for arriving cruise ships). This overall increase in quarantine procedures is part of a $600 million Federal Government boost to tighten Australian borders. There have been several quarantine scares in recent months and combined with the ongoing threat of foot and mouth disease, they have been contributing factors in the tightening of quarantine procedures.

Governments fund $10 million package to fight sigatoka
The State and Federal Government have jointly provided $10 million towards a $17.8 million sigatoka eradication program in the Tully River Valley. Black sigatoka has devastated banana crops in other countries around the world. Once the fungal infection is established it is very difficult to remove. The disease causes a loss of production and defoliation of banana trees. Until recently the banana industry in Australia was considered to be completely free of black sigatoka with only several small outbreaks in recent years. The bight discovered in the Tully River Basin has been the worst in history and the Australian Banana Growers Council have played an active role in ensuring that the Government moves fast to prevent the spread of the infection, which could possibly destroy the industry. There is also strong support for banning the importation of bananas from countries that have black sigatoka.

Cooktown celebrates in style despite rain
Every year Cooktown (270 km north of Cairns) celebrates the re-enactment of Captain Cook's landing on the shores of the Endeavour River in 1770. Numbers were slightly down this year, due mainly to poor weather conditions, however the spirited crowd made the most of the three day long event. The visitors were well behaved and police reported very few arrests. Captain Cook didn't have a good time when visiting this part of the world. His ship, The Endeavour ran aground on the Great Barrier Reef, and it limped to shore for repairs. Cooktown was established on the banks of the Endeavour River which was infested with crocodiles and the occasional unfriendly aboriginal.

Cairns Mayor anger rate payers
Cairns City ratepayers have been angered by a proposed increase in rates for all landowners in the Cairns Shire. The price rise has been deemed necessary by the Mayor, Kevin Byrne, has the costs of providing services has increased in the past 12 months. More information will follow when the official budget is handed down.

Wet Tropics Management Authority
The Government group charged with managing the Wet Tropics of Queensland have released a new corporate image and slogan to help promote the rainforest areas that they promote. The old symbol, the cassowary (a large flightless bird like an emu or ostrich) has been identified as being to hard to identify, especially for foreign tourists who often think that it is a turkey. A frog has replaced the cassowary symbol. The name of the authority is changing to Australia's Tropical Rainforests, as the word "wet" was believed to put a negative connotation on the regions. The new logo and name will be promoted throughout all areas with new signage and promotional material.

Cairns Taxi rolls over on the Esplanade
In a single vehicle accident involving a Cairns taxi carrying two passengers, the vehicle sheared a palm tree off at the base before rolling onto its side early last Wednesday morning. No one was injured in the accident which was blamed on a medical condition which incapacitated the driver.

Keifer Sutherland loves Cairns
Leading actor, Keifer Sutherland, has spoken openly about his stay in North Queensland for the shooting of the film, Paradise Found. Sutherland plays the role of Gauguin, in this $9.1 million French/Australian production. Most of the filming has been conducted in the Innisfail area, approximately 87 km south of Cairns.

Night club worker electrocuted
Workplace health and safety officers are investigating the electrocution death of an employee at the prominent Cairns nightclub, The Woolshed. A second man received an electric shock whilst trying to assist the injured man. There was no apparent sign as to what caused the problem.

Bumper land sales attributed to Government grant
Cairns has experienced a land rush in the period following the announcement of the Federal Governments $14,000 first homebuyers grant scheme. Figures show a 400% growth in land sales in the past 2 months, which this surge expected to continue until the end of the year. The positive affect that this will have on the economy of Cairns is expected to be very significant.