My lovely car goes for a swim

Over the coming weeks, Diane and I see quite a lot of each other. She is a teacher at the Korobosea Primary School and as Christmas draws near, she informs me she’ll be going home to her parents in Sydney over the Christmas break.

It’s a Saturday when she leaves and we all go to the airport to see her off. After the plane takes off, we head for the bar at the Gateway Hotel and stay well into the afternoon. Willie, Werner and Phil are not in Port Moresby so I have the flat to myself. I get home and have a snooze after the pub visit.

I wake up with an enormous deluge which must have gone on for some time before I finally realise its pouring down rain. I get up and walk to the door of the flat and see the water is about 5 centimeters below the floor of the flat. The flat is about a metre off the ground. I’m instantly sober. My car! Willie’s car! They are both outside the flat. I wade down the stairs and out through the gate just to see Willie’s ute disappearing in the distance and sinking into the creek next door. I wade over to my own car just as it takes off too. I try desperately to hang on but the car is much too heavy and floats away too. It too disappears into the creek.

My Ford Falcon just before it gets washed away in the flood

As fast as the flood came up, it drops down and within an hour, the water has all but disappeared. It’s now dark and I grab a torch and walk over to where our cars are. Willie’s ute is on the bottom, and my Falcon is half on the creek bank and half on top of Willie’s ute (pick-up). Great! I’m still paying my car off. 


It’s Friday. On Monday I’m due to fly to Lae to start working on an OTC building, what can I to do? Nothing, I have to rely on others.

On Sunday, I phone Dave Smith and tell him what happened. I ask him to call PNG Motors first thing Monday Morning to pick up the car and take it to their workshop and strip the engine down to prevent it from rusting. He assures me that’s what he will do. He also promises to send a telegram to Willie who works in Madang, to let him know what happened to his his ute.

Next - Dave lets us down