Outback Exodus by Millen Dawn

Author:Millen, Dawn [Millen, Dawn]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Twinny In A Tinny Publications
Published: 2014-01-15T08:00:00+00:00

Chapter 24

Smithtown slowly shrinks into the distance in the rear vision mirror. The dust cloud kicked up by the convoy cloaks the damage we are leaving behind. Ahead I see clear road and gently change the truck into top gear. There is going to be a huge red cloud of dust to mark our passage across the flat lands and it will be seen for miles. I click the third radio in the cab to the School of the Air frequency and send out a call to anyone who is listening in. Crackles return, but I will continue to do this as we travel. Tammy and Robin were found by the radio and I hope to be able to find others this way. I switch between School of the Air and the local Emergency Channels and call again, still only crackles reply to my calls.

Every quarter hour I call out “This is Jenn from the Coast Convoy, are there any others out there who can see our dust cloud?” I call again and again. “We are sticking close to the highway from Smithtown to Gunnedah. I will keep this channel open for fifteen minutes listening watch.”

Gavin has also switched into the channels and is listening and as my voice fades through the afternoon takes over the calls. “This is Police Sargent Gavin Brown from Smithtown, can anyone see the dust cloud from our convoy. We are heading for the coast and have a Doctor and Nurses in our group. If anyone needs help please reply and we will come to you.” His deep, calm voice breaks the constant crackle on the airwaves. Nothing is heard.

We are constantly stopping and starting throughout the journey, sometimes to clear downed trees, sometimes to cut fences and divert through paddocks to avoid crevasses and now and again a longer detour to avoid the sand bogs thrown up during the earthquakes. We also stop near the lonely outback stations and check for signs of life there. Many of the homesteads have fallen in on themselves and the stench of death is present, no signs of living humans can be found though. Some though intact are uninhabited, their owners having fled before we arrived. The only signs of life are the animals that have been abandoned to fend for themselves.

Water is passed through vehicle windows and the request is for people to save the bottles, we will refill them at the next decent water source that we find. There will not be enough bottled water for the whole trip and we need to conserve the bottles to transport the water.

I am feeling tired now as last night’s shift catches up with me. The sun’s glare is intense and starting to give me a headache. I glance at the clock on the dashboard and it is almost 2pm. Time to look for somewhere to set up camp for the night. We have covered a little over 30 miles today. It is a good start considering how often we stop and start, divert and check on the homesteads.

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