There’s a real lack of slice o’ life stuff in the Australian news cycle lately. Stuff that makes you laugh, and think that “this is Australia.”
Who knows what the cause for this particular gap in the news market is. Maybe everyone’s withdrawing into themselves a bit to deal with the change in seasons. Maybe it’s just been a string of bad luck.
Or maybe, just maybe, we’ve all simply been patiently waiting for this particular story to come along and knock us all on our arses.
A pair of tough-as-nails cops in the Northern Territory (which is how all great stories begin, TBH) made a teeny tiny little misstep in attempting a river crossing over the Victoria River. The pair were attempting to travel from Yarralin (265km south-west of Katherine) to Lajamanu (3 hours north of East Buttfuck Nowhere). When they hit the river at the Dashwood Crossing, things went pear-shaped in a big hurry.
The pair had made the crossing before and deeming this particular occasion safe, but what they didn’t know this time was that recent flooding had caused part of the concrete causeway to wash away.
So instead of a safe, if not slightly terrifying, river crossing, the police ute ended up in the drink – and in a spot where a 3.75m cattle-hunting croc had previously been found really bloody close nearby.
Fortunately, neither of the cops were hurt in the incident. But with their belongings in the car and no way of contacting help in the remote spot, they had no choice but to walk to Victoria River Downs Police Station in order to raise the alarm.
Which was 14.5 kilometres away.
Which they had to walk barefoot.
Because apparently they’d been driving in thongs.
AUS. BLOODY. STRAYA.
Ken Beresford, who owns Katherine Towing, was in charge of the mob who dragged the ute out of water, and said he did not blame the cops for what happened.
“Who would imagine the concrete would have washed away? They were the first ones across it. It’s no fault of the cops.”
The police had to trek across through the waters in order to retrieve their keys and personal belongings from the car, which was towed to the opposite side of the river. One of the cops apparently got washed into the river five times whilst trying to do so, as if this day for the boys weren’t bad enough by itself.
And as for the car? Beresford put it rather elegantly.
“The car is a mess. It has a really massive gouge down the side.”
It’s bloody God’s country, this land of ours I tell you.
Photo: Twitter.
