TEXT messages sent to warn Coonabarabran residents of a fire that would become catastrophic in the heat of January 2013 were not received because of mobile phone black spots, reports Parkes MP Mark Coulton.
Likewise, they impeded the call-up of members of bushfire brigades in the battle to contain flames that would wipe out more than 50 homes, he said.
Mr Coulton has referred back to the disaster as the federal government asks the nation how best to spend $100 million to address mobile phone black spots with the release of a discussion paper.
The MP estimates half the land mass of his electorate of almost 257,000 square kilometres has “no mobile phone coverage at all”.
Constant travel in the electorate has informed Mr Coulton that there are “plenty of places where we need to fill the gaps”, including remote communities in the west, the hills around Mudgee and Dubbo’s Obley Road.
“More towers” are the answer, according to Mr Coulton who gets annoyed at constant talk about the National Broadband Network when “people up the road can’t use their phones”.
“I think we should be concentrating on that first,” he said.
Mr Coulton said $2.7 billion set aside for regional infrastructure after the sale of Telstra had been returned to general revenue by the Rudd government when the global financial crisis hit.
“For six years there’s been no money from the government for mobile towers,” he said.
Mr Coulton is urging residents of the Parkes electorate to read the discussion paper and make comment.
“This discussion paper is an opportunity for residents and community leaders in the Parkes electorate to provide input on this important program and to help make sure Western NSW gets its fair share of the money,” he said.
Mr Coulton considers the “most pressing need” for a new tower in his electorate may be at Goolma, a crossroads for traffic from Dubbo, Wellington and Mudgee.
“If there’s an accident in that area there’s no phone coverage,” he said.
The $100 million promised by the current government will be spent in outer metropolitan, regional and remote communities.
To view the discussion paper go to www.communications.gov.au/
mobile_services/mobile_coverage_programme.
Submissions must be received by 5pm on February 28.
From www.dailyliberal.com.au
