By Nancy Hsu
Reporter
Youth Journalism International
BRISBANE, Queensland, Australia – Pharmacist Tina Wong was one of the lucky ones after floodwaters swamped the area around her business.
The Laidley, Lockyer Valley resident, evacuated to survive the life threatening Queensland floods and worried as the skies poured on Tuesday.
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| Pharmacist Tina Wong, holding nephew Jusin Wong Photo provided |
“When the rain continued to hammer down on us, I feared the worst because I couldn’t get into Laidley as it was an inland lake,” Wong said.
But she was relieved to find her property and business undamaged upon her return.
“One of my pharmacies were partially flooded, but the other was fine and so was my house,” said Wong, who owns stores in Laidley and Plainland.
“The whole main street, where my pharmacy is, apparently had a river running down it,” she said. “When I got into Laidley Pharmacy on Wednesday morning, only half the ramp going up into the shop had water stains, and apart from a few puddles of water here and there, we were completely spared of any loss! A few doors down they were bulldozing mud out. Shops were devastated. Across the road, they had water all through.”
Wong praised her employees, who endured a tough situation.
“I live amongst a wonderful community and have the best staff in the world!” she said. “My amazing staff worked hard to wash the mud off the front door, mop the floors and put everything back in its place while I frantically served needy customers at the other pharmacy in Plainland.”
One of her pharmacists, Wong said, managed to find a way around the water to get into town so the pharmacy was open by 12:30 p.m. Wednesday.
“It was surreal to be operating again,” she said. “Inside the shop, it was as though nothing had happened. Outside, major clean-up was happening in many of the other stores.”
In the wake of the flooding, Wong said she’s been working hard and sleeping very little.
“Apart from that, I am absolutely fine,” she said, “in good spirits and happy to see all my staff are safe.”
