Club's appeal after floods leave $260,000 repair bill

Caboolture Little Athletics (CLA) needs more help as it tries to recover from the devastating floods in late February.

The club lost virtually everything when three of its four sheds and canteen at Wolfenden Oval, at Centenary Lakes, were inundated by two metres of water.

Only the top of the line-marking shed roof was visible at one stage.

CLA’s Grants Officer and Tiny Tots Co-ordinator Karen Vohland, who is also a life member, said the losses were in excess of $260,000.

Grant applications have been made ($10,000 received so far) and a GoFundMe campaign started – more than $3000 donated - but CLA is still a long way short of its target.

Floodlights at the oval will cost $56,000 to repair with the eSwitch system and light controls needing to be replaced.

The canteen and all its stock and equipment (fridge, freezer, white goods etc) was lost and will cost $13,000 to replace.

Caboolture Little Athletics has spent $3200, so far, on clean-up costs and has 800 of training equipment damaged beyond repair.

Picture gallery - click through

Maintenance equipment - including a ride-on line marker, marker paint, blower, strimmer, hoses, mops, buckets, shovels etc – have all been lost.

Electronic timing gates, costing $7700, cannot be repaired. Nor can the stopwatches.

Contaminated waste filled the long jump pit with mud, tree parts, dead fish and flotsam covering the tartan runway. The concrete and runway is cracked.

Five schools have booked to hold their athletics carnivals at Wolfenden Oval, from June, using club equipment and grounds prepared by the club.

“If anyone wants to donate money, that would be fantastic,” Ms Vohland said, “we will be publishing where and how the money is spent.

“If anyone has goods they would like to donate, that too would be fantastic.”

If you wish to help Caboolture Little Athletics visit gofundme.com – Caboolture Little Athletics – restore our club. Fundraiser by Michelle White

Or email the club at [email protected]