Friday 8th November - Moura
A stinking hot day with the temperature reaching 40.5 under the annex. Thankfully we don't have to go anywhere today. We didn't even go outside. The aircon has been on since 9.30 this morning. Last night it got down to 20.8. We move on tomorrow so hopefully it will be cooler. Moura was originally the name of the pastoral lease held in 1854. In 1936 the town was established as a farming centre near Moura Station. Coal has been mined here since 1961, making it one of the oldest mining regions in the Central Queensland Highlands. The mine is currently called the Dawson Mine, and it's name has changed over the years depending on ownership. Coal used to be mined underground, but this ceased in 1994, after the third tragic accident in nearly 20 years. The major accidents were in 1975, claiming 13 miners lives. Next was 1976 when 12 miners were killed, the youngest being only 18 and finally in August 1994, when 11 miners were lost. During the recovery of this one, after 18 hours, a second, more violent explosion occurred, and recovery attempts were abandoned. The mine was then sealed at the surface. There have been smaller accidents, the most recent being a supervisor who was runover by a reversing ore truck. There is a miners memorial in town, that goes through the history of mining and also tells the stories of some of the miners who have lost their lives through the years.