Eungella residents want an alternative exit after Cyclone Koji cuts the range road again

After Tropical Cyclone Koji in mid-January, the Mackay-Eungella Range Road was completely cut off for the second time in three years.

Snaking up the cloud-capped slopes, the road is the only all-vehicle, sealed access point for the Eungella community.

When the range closes, access to medicine, food and the outside world is lost, with the only alternative route requiring a four-wheel drive vehicle.

'It just did not stop raining'

With a population of 200 people, Eungella lies in Australia's longest continuous stretch of subtropical rainforest.

In the past 16 years, Tess Ford, the manager of the Eungella Chalet, has seen floods, fires and storms. The hotel has often provided refuge and a temporary home for those who have lost theirs.

When hit on January 11, Ms Ford said, "It just did not stop raining."

The Bureau of Meteorology recorded 292 millimetres of rain in Eungella that day.

Ms Ford said being isolated by the cut-off range was always worrying.

"If someone is drastically ill, you can always get a [helicopter] back in," she said.

"But that can be extremely dangerous in the sense that everything's clouded in."

The most recent range closure lasted three days, but in 2023, the community went without supplies for nearly eight.

Giving birth in a storm

Angelique McKay was 38 weeks pregnant when torrential rain hit Eungella in 2023.

When Ms McKay went into labour in the middle of the night, the range was blocked by debris.

"The [ambulance] was at the bottom of the range and [they] said, 'We can't get to you. The range is out,'" she said.

With no other option, Ms McKay gave birth in the lounge room of the town's State Emergency Service officer.

When the range went out again earlier this year, the memories flooded back.

"We were gobsmacked," Ms McKay said.

"We thought maybe, considering all the construction and the work that they've done previously, that maybe it wouldn't happen."

While she no longer lives in Eungella, she worries about those who do.

"That road's their only lifeline," she said.

"We need a different lifeline; we need another way out."

Calls for improvements

The Eungella Range Road is cut into exposed granite rock and deep red volcanic soils, which become unstable in severe weather.

Its recent closure has reignited calls for it to be improved.

During the clean-up after Koji, Queensland Premier David Crisafulli told press the road should be rebuilt better.

"It shouldn't be just repaired to the same standard; it's got to be strengthened," he said.

The issue is front of mind for Jo Freegard, the president of the Eungella Community Development Association.

"The focus moving forward for all levels of government needs to be an alternative access route for us," she said.

Ms Freegard said while the back four-wheel-drive track adds time to the journey to Mackay, it could reduce how long the community remained isolated during disasters.

"Even in heavy, heavy rain, within two or three days, the creeks are down," she said.

"With a bit of an upgrade, it would be passable for everybody."

Mayor Greg Williamson confirmed that the Mackay Regional Council was considering plans for the back road.

"It requires a lot of money to make that a trafficable road … [but] we understand that a secondary connection that is usable by all traffic is actually vital for Eungella in these times," he said.

Community spirit

The community is still reeling from past disasters, and Ms McKay's mother, Shona Quick, knows how frustrating it is to keep starting again.

In 2017, rain from Cyclone Debbie leaked into her ceiling and spread mould, ruining her furniture.

Then came the fires in 2018, with firefighters narrowly saving her property.

"Community spirit was what held us together," she said.

This year's rain brought more damage. Water poured into her home, destroying her flooring and shorting out her oven.

Living on a disability pension in a remote community, Ms Quick said recovery was slow and costly.

"There are a lot of people who won't recover from this at all," she said, adding that the repeated road closures took a toll on the community's resilience.

"Why, three years later, have we not had a project proposed for an emergency road in and out when the range collapses?" she said.

Open for business

For now, the range road is partially open again, and the Department of Transport and Main Roads says it is "working to restore full access safely".

However, the way forward for the back road remains uncertain, falling under the domain of local councils.

But with the sun shining and the hum of rainforest life returning, residents say Eungella is well and truly open for business.

"Spot a platypus, grab a beer, check out the view, have a big crumb steak," Ms Ford said.

"Come and stay the night. Have a restful sleep in the high altitude and calm of Eungella."