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Warramunga
breathes new life into old station
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Members
of HMAS Warramunga’s ship’s company joined their
Army collegues at the Drumsite station to begin restoration
of the historic building. The station was part of a network
of rail facilities used in phosphate mining.
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Patching
the render and in places replacing it ready for a new coat
of paint. Warramunga’s chippies built a new roof, a
copy of the old.
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Sailors
and soldiers deployed on Op Relex II border protection activities
aboard the Anzac Class Frigate, HMAS Warramunga (CMDR Ian Middleton),
recently turned their hands to a community project on Christmas
Island. The seemingly innocuous task of restoring an old “train
station” proved a handful, but many hands made for light work
and the structure now bears renewed witness to its part in the history
of CI and the handiwork of our Defence members.
The old “train station” is rather more like an outdoors
concrete room, about 8mx5m, and 2m high; it now squats humble but
proud on the skyline of the Drumsite settlement area overlooking
Flying Fish Cove and the dizzying blue depths of the waters to Christmas
Island’s north. It was the control point for the rail line,
which was laid shortly after the beginning of phosphate mining operations
in 1899 and its ageing, decrepit structure was begging for either
a demolition or an overhaul.
Close to a century had taken its toll on the old station —
her corners were crumbling, the once whitewashed surface blackened
by fire and mould, wooden aspects eaten through by termites, the
asbestos roof long-gone and power had been off for nearly 20 years.
Across the island there are many scattered relics such as this little
structure; locomotives, graveyards, shipwrecks, wartime OPs and
gun emplacement in the Governance Precinct at Tai Jin House, to
name a few. Each piece adding to the unique history that is the
story of CI, and each piece slowly losing the battle against the
relentless elements of sea air, baking sun, monsoonal rains, whipping
winds and creeping vegetation.
Despite this sad realisation, the CI Shire simply has not been able
to accommodate the costs involved with any such labour intensive
restoration or salvage projects, so it was with delight that Phil
Harris, Manager of CI Public Works and Maintenance, agreed to equip
the keen team with all goods necessary to make of the station what
they could in the spirit of its original form.
Between five and 15 people at any one time worked the job for a
full three days to transform the defeated old icon into the sturdy
and enlivened structure it stands to be. After gutting the building
of all her fittings, the walls and heritage windows were painstakingly
prepared for their new coating over the first two days.
Amid the constant barrage of shopping lists coming from the contingent
eager to do a quality job, Phil was very pleased to learn that hidden
among the talents of the group lurked a couple of chippies who were
able to dress the building with a new colour-bond roof in the same
style as the original.
So too, it seemed were many of the locals who tooted and shouted
their approval as they drove by, or gave an enthusiastic substitute
for English in a thumbs-up and toothy smile from beneath a colourful
parasol while strolling by for a closer inspection.
This community project is the most recent of a number of similar
works courtesy of the ADF members operating in the area.
There are now plans to turn the area into an outdoor museum complete
with historic steam locomotives and the station as the centrepiece.
While mutually beneficial activities such as this have provided
a means for sailors and soldiers to turn their hands to a refreshing,
productive and satisfying task during a respite from operational
duties, they have also been a wonderful opportunity for the ADF
to make a positive, lasting and appreciated contribution to the
local community.
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