Swamp creatures

Circa 1940s and  1950s,  in Cairns and Townsville, workers had to be cautious, leaving work or arriving for work, early in the morning. For instance, the telegram boy who manned the Townsville Post Office, at night,  never left, without inching the front door open, ever so slowly and carefully, scanning the front verandah for crocodiles that may have ventured up, from  Ross Creek, during the night.  Eagerness to finish the shift early was tempered, by the fear of what may have been waiting outside.  Sometimes, before opening for business, brooms and specially designed poles were used by Post Office staff, to persuade these reptilian migrants, to return to the creek.  Cairns, during a sustained wet season could produce crocodiles in drains, on roads and under the high-set houses.  It was best, to keep the dog inside the house, during these wet periods and just hope the chooks could find safe perches in trees. It was always recommended to approach your car, (if you were fortunate enough to own one) cautiously.   A not uncommon occurrence was a crocodile slithering out from underneath the chassis, on your approach, or still more unnerving, after you started the car.

Circa 2016, Cairns, school cleaners working in a school, adjacent to low-lying, inhospitable vacant land (formerly called a swamp)  have been banned from starting work before dawn, because of the danger posed by the swamp's present low- life inhabitants , drug addicts.