A British newspaper report alleging backpackers in Airlie Beach have been forced to scavenge food out of bins in the wake of Cyclone Ului has been refuted by Beaches Backpackers general manager Nathan Fleming.
The UK Daily Telegraph reported on Monday that backpackers “were left to fend for themselves” following the cyclone. In the article, mayor of the Whitsunday Council Mike Brunker said he had heard reports of hungry backpackers scavenging food that had been thrown out by the local grocery store. Brunker added the council had provided a free all-day barbecue for tourists.
But Beaches Backpackers Airlie Beach general manager Nathan Fleming said the allegations of backpackers eating from bins were false and the community had provided free food on Monday.
“That’s bullshit. We had a free barbecue for more than 100 people and the council also ran one for backpackers all day. Coles was still open – we were running free shuttle buses there.”
He added that the hostel was forced to close today following damage to communal areas by flooding and fallen trees.
“It was full-on, wind speeds of 205km per hour hit us, we had our big sail above the courtyard ripped off, we’ve got trees through balconies. Our reception area and driveway was full of water, you could have almost gone white water rafting on it,” he said.
Fleming added: “We’ve had to close down today until further notice but we hope to have the hostel operational again by Thursday and the bar and bistro operational by Saturday. We told our customers that safety is our number one priority and that we had to close.”
He said that most guests had either travelled further north or opted for southern destinations as an alternative. He said he was forced to advise bus companies to divert passengers from the area on Monday as tourists were still arriving despite the cyclone only hitting the day before.
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