Australia, WA

New South Wales, Australia, August 2013

George continues his tour of Western Australia. Here he is at the Meckering Earthquake Display. At 10.59a.m., on 14th October, 1968, the small town of Meckering, about 130 km east of Perth, was destroyed by an earthquake. Twenty people were injured, but incredibly, no one was killed. Although the Meckering earthquake was not the largest in WA’s history, it was certainly the most significant in term of damage done. It caused ground rupturing nearly 40 km long, some of which is still to be seen today. The maximum heave was 2.4 m, max vertical displacement was 2.0 m, and the maximum strike slip movement was 1.5 m.

In Jennacubbine which is in the wheat belt of Western Australia George was warned about fumigations. Fumigation is a method of pest control that completely fills an area with gaseous pesticides—or fumigants—to suffocate or poison the pests within. First recorded in 1848 as “Jenacubine”, with Jennacubbine being adopted in 1889. The town was established as a siding on the near by railway line in 1902, when it had a hotel, a general store, two other shops, and eight houses in the main street. A Catholic church was constructed in 1905 and was used as a school until 1911. By the 1960s, all that was left was the hotel, the general store and one house. In 1970 the more than 100 years old general store was burnt to the ground, in a late night fire.

Here George is with his ride.