Unprecedented flooding in Brisbane, Australia has had a dramatic impact on the area’s public assembly venues.
Past
VMA Executive Director John Benett reports that, “We are high and dry …
but the city and suburbs around the Brisbane River are totally
decimated. The peak was on Wednesday at 4 a.m. and did not reach the
previous (1974) height that wiped out more properties and unfortunately,
lives. The cleanup will take weeks if not months in some parts and
business destruction is widespread.”
Benett said that
Suncorp Stadium (pictured) has postponed a Sunday soccer match between
the Brisbane Roar and Wellington Phoenix while the grounds will remain
closed indefinitely. Benett added that the entire natural grass turf
surface had been replaced just a week or so earlier after staging U2 and
Bon Jovi concerts.
Elsewhere, the Brisbane Convention
& Exhibition Centre is closed until Monday, January 17 because of
the extreme weather conditions, while the Queensland Performing Arts
Centre is closed until further notice.
“Other venues,
although they have minor damage, did not have events planned that were
not able to be rescheduled or are being held in a few weeks which may
give them enough time to clean up and stage,” said Benett.