Just like in a children’s fairytale, a crowned prince from a far away land touched down in Proserpine late yesterday afternoon bearing a gift for the Whitsundays that would unite two nations forever.
In a scene that made you proud to be Australian, his royal highness Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed al Nahyan from the United Arab Emirates was welcomed by a sea of Australian and UAE flags held proudly and excitedly by Proserpine State Primary School students who sat collectively to form the letters U, A and E - visible from the helicopter.
Sheikh Abdullah and his entourage made an historic stopover in Proserpine for the official turning of the sod for the new cyclone shelter, which will be built on the school grounds within 12 months.
Deputy Premier Andrew Fraser, Local member Jan Jarratt and Mayor Mike Brunker were also there to welcome the distinguished guest.
"Our relationship with Queensland stretches beyond the government. We want to be friends with you," His Highness Abdullah said.
"It’s true we come from very different societies and cultures, we talk different and the colour of our skin is different, but there are also great similarities. We all love kids … and we all love you … you are our future," he told the students.
The Sheikh heard from Major General RG Wilson who heads up the recovery task force who spoke of the restoration process in Queensland.
"22 lives were lost, three quarters of Queensland was declared a disaster zone and 2-and-a-half million people were in the disaster area. But we are on our way to recovery and I thank you on behalf of everyone in Queensland for your generous donation," Major RG Wilson said.
School captains Timothy Hines, Logan Donadelli, Darcy Pepper and Dana Madeley then gave personal accounts of their harrowing time during the last wet season, with Tim’s recollection of the landslide.
"We were lucky to get out alive. Amazingly the mudslide was diverted somewhere a bit further up the mountain but we had mud and rocks through our home for weeks.
"We were cut off for three days from town," he told the prince.
"The facility will not only be a cyclone shelter but a hall for the entire community," the captains said.
The Proserpine State Primary School band played the national anthems for the two nations, which drew applause from the prince before he was invited to officially turn the sod for the new centre.
Deputy premier Andrew Fraser told the crowd that this was the beginning of a great friendship.
"We have a saying here in Australia …that you discover who your true friends are in times of need … and it was during the cyclone that this friendship was formed," he said.
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