A town with a history of social problems in Western Australia's Kimberley region is experiencing an economic boom as tradespeople and government authorities flock to the region to undertake flood repairs.
The bridge in Fitzroy Crossing was fully demolished last week after it buckled following flooding caused by ex-Tropical Cyclone Ellie in January.
The state government had placed a high priority on getting the bridge back up and running, with a low-level crossing constructed to help plug the gap in critical infrastructure.
Work was also underway to repair parts of the Great Northern Highway, a main arterial route into the Kimberley region that was washed out by the one-in-100-year flood.
The billion-dollar repairs have brought dozens of jobs into the small town of Fitzroy Crossing, which has often acted as a rest-stop for truckers and a service hub for the surrounding remote communities.
The town has some of the highest unemployment rates in Western Australia, and has suffered with alcohol-fuelled violence and a youth crime crisis in recent years.
But it is hoped the economic boost will help shed the town of its reputation.
Main Roads Kimberley manager Gerry Zoetelief has been helping locals get involved with the massive work around town.
“We’ve already put 20 people through training courses, and we’re planning more training courses, but there’s definitely interest in getting involved in delivering the works,” he said.
With a main focus of the rebuild centred around local employment, Mr Zoetelief said it had also been a good opportunity to upskill people who already had basic knowledge about road construction.
"If we've got skilled people, we've been putting them on loaders and excavators and maybe the occasional truck," he said.
"We're gradually trying to upskill a lot more of the locals where they learn a bit of traffic management and then do a certificate in civil construction, where they might be learning how to do concrete or reinforcement work."
New money in town
Businesses said they were also benefiting from the increase of workers in town.
The local workers' camp is often fully booked, and the Fitzroy River Lodge has done a roaring trade in recent months.
Neralie Middleton runs the Willare Bridge Roadhouse and said it had been interesting to see the change in people using the facility.
"It's a lot different [from] tourism traffic," she said.
"What we're seeing now is more workers coming through and they are tirelessly working on rebuilding the road."
Ms Middleton said as the roads were fixed, she expected to see the return of her normal clientele.
"Tourism is a little shy from last year … but we've been busy looking after all the trades coming through," she said.
"But the [return of tourism] is certainly on the cards here come July and August, which is our peak season."
An economic legacy
Emergency Services state recovery coordinator Rob Cossart said while it was clear the floods continued to have an impact on local people, it was important to acknowledge the positives that had come with recovery.
"I think we're incredibly proud of the focus we've got around local procurement, local employment and local outcomes," he said.
Mr Cossart said creating an "economic legacy" for Fitzroy Crossing was the next step.
"We need to continue that momentum, because we're only at the beginning of this journey," he said.
It is a view echoed by Mr Zoetelief.
"Hopefully there will be ongoing work into the future that we might be able to use [the new workers] on other bridges and roadway projects around the Kimberley," he said.
