'Glorious sight': Drought-stricken farmer's remarkable before and after photos
A NSW farmer has shared before and after photos of a wharf he built on his drought-stricken property.
Rod Cole, who lives in a property called Kurrawarra in Ogunbil, about 50km east from Tamworth, shared photos of a wharf he built two years ago on Facebook.
The first photo shows the wharf, built at a dam in his property, in January. The second is a pic from Tuesday.
Mr Cole told Yahoo News Australia he put Murray cod in the pond in 2012 some, which grew up to 88cm long.
“In January this year they were all dead,” he said.
“The lack of oxygen in the water couldn’t sustain them.”
Mr Cole, a carpenter by trade who also runs an Angus stud farm, said 2019’s rainfall was “just woeful”.
“It just decimated us,” he said.
“We had to sell a heap of calves but we’re slowly building the herd back up.”
He told Prime7 in 2018 the conditions for one of his cattle were so poor he had to perform a cesarean to save her unborn calf as she died.
Such was her poor condition, Mr Cole said the vet recommended having the cow put down.
Mr Cole said the ground in the area was so dry that any rainfall up until February was basically absorbed into the dirt and there was “no run-off” from the dam at all.
The cattle farmer’s story echoes many Australians dealing with drought.
Volunteer firie recalls 'tornadoes of fire' that almost wiped out her family
How parents' attempt to save water led to tragedy in just six minutes
“The old timers tell me it’s been unprecedented,” he said.
According to the Bureau of Meteorology, much of the area on either side of the Great Dividing Range in NSW, which Mr Cole lives west of, has either experienced “serious rainfall deficiency” or “severe rainfall deficiency” between April 1, 2018 until June 30 this year.
NSW’s east coast was lashed by rain with some areas on the south coast receiving more than 150mm on Monday.
Mr Cole told Yahoo News Australia, his property received 30mm on Sunday, 45mm on Monday and 8mm on Tuesday.
When asked how he felt seeing the dam filling up he said it was “elation”.
“I felt fantastic - I never thought I’d see it,” he said.
On Facebook, people were ecstatic by the dam’s “absolutely awesome” transformation.
One woman called it “a glorious sight”.
“I can see how awesome that’s going to be on a hot summer's day down by the water,” another woman wrote.
Mr Cole said many coping with drought have just had to “hang on” to hope.
But he’s praying things are improving.
“I really believe we’ve turned the corner,” he said.
Do you have a story tip? Email: newsroomau@yahoonews.com.
You can also follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter and download the Yahoo News app from the App Store or Google Play.
