Today in Melbourne the 1600 gumboots donated by The Warehouse were loaded onto trucks along with other essential relief supplies headed for Queensland where they are being named as a critically important item in the flood clean-up. No doubt they’ll be needed in Victoria too.
Organised by relief agency, Operation Angel, who last worked in Victoria’s Bushfires, thousands of gumboots have been loaded onto trucks by volunteers and carried free of charge by Toll Transport to Brisbane, Somerset, Ipswich, Lockyer Valley, Esk, Laidley & Riverview.
Word of this quirky, but vital initiative has spread around the globe with stories running on CNN, BBC World, New Zealand media & PRI radio across the USA.
1600 of the gumboots were donated by The Warehouse, along with hundreds more from Bata in Victoria. The latest major boots donation came from iconic Aussie brand Blundstone with 3000 pairs of boots – 1000 from Australia, and 2000 to be shipped over from New Zealand. (I’ve got a pair of blundstones)
Via a hugely successful radio and viral Twitter campaign, scores more pre-loved gumboots have been donated by members of the Australian public, along with sturdy metal gardening tools and other items.
Offers of gumboots have flooded in from corporate donors around the globe following Jonathan Mann, CNN’s lead anchor’s interview with Operation Angel’s Founder and Director, Jacqueline Pascarl, as the prime time lead story internationally.
Jacqueline is pictured above (on the right). Not sure who other person is.
what’s the latest on Kiwis in Oz being refused help?
NZ High Commission is making representations to the Oz Govt.
This is a great project Clare. Good to see it all underway.
On another note. I understand that even after the major floods in the 1970′s the Queensland Government gave permits to real estate developers to build many new suburbs and commercial developments on known flood plains.
Not good. A few people made a lot of money, and now look at how many have lost out.
CV BRISBANE is built on a flood plane. Let’s face it, early european settlers recognised the inhospitable nature of Australia, and tried to force the land to comply with their european ways.