The Country 07/03/25: Shane McManaway talks to Jamie Mackay

The founder and patron of the Zanda McDonald Awards is currently on the Gold Coast where he was getting ready for the (now postponed) Impact Summit conference next week while looking into the eye of the storm of Cyclone Alfred.

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Well, it's all on in Australia at the moment, as
tropical Cyclone Alfred bears down on well eastern Queensland and
of course eastern and New South Wales. A man literally
in the eye of the storm. Is why are Rapp
a farmer or the bloke behind the Zander McDonald Awards,
Shane mcmaanaway, Shane, you're at broad Beach, just down from

(00:22):
surface Paradise. You quite literally are in the eye of
the storm.

Speaker 2 (00:27):
Yeah, good afternoon, Jamie. We are. We've got a place
just down on the beach at Broadbeach, and literally we're
about seventy meters from our place to the sea. So
just as I talk to you now, I'm just looking
out to the sea as they're saying that there's some
fifteen meter to twenty meter waves rolling and aspar as
you can see out to the back, right out probably
kilometer kilometer and a half, there is this mountains of

(00:49):
walls of water just building and building and building and
just taking the beach away. Jamie's unbelievable. People that have
lived here all your lives have never seen anything like it.

Speaker 1 (01:00):
Shane. If you're only seventy meters from the waterfront and
the waves of fifteen or twenty meters high. The maths
don't work out very well on that one. Could you
get inundated?

Speaker 2 (01:12):
Well, we're hoping not. They say that at high tide
tomorrow morning, at three o'clock there will be the water
will be about a meter and higher than it normally
ever is. And I think we're okay, we're sort of
up a little bit bit elevated along the beach front here.
But you know, all these houses are built on sand,
and these storm surges that build and come in, you know,

(01:33):
they're very, very unpredictable. So look, we we could be,
but you know, our first and foremost interest is in
looking after ourselves, as it is for everybody here. The
emergency services are doing a fantastic job. They've told everybody
just to stay inside, keep off the roads, and hunker
down and keep yourself safe. So that's what we're focused on.

Speaker 1 (01:53):
Some of the potential rainfall numbers are eye watering. In fact,
they're just straight out frightening. Five hundred to eight hundred
and thirty MILS forecast.

Speaker 2 (02:04):
Yeah, and Jamie, the thing hasn't really sort of hit yet,
to be quite honest, And last night We've got one
hundred and forty milks overnight and it's just steady rain here.
It can certainly certainly rain when it does. It's out
of the coast here, about one hundred and sixty kilometers
off the coast at the moment, and it's intensifying. That
just watched the latest reports here. The thing is intensifying

(02:26):
and the clouds are getting higher. Through the satellite image
as they can see, the clouds are getting high and high,
which basically lowest the sea tip the pressure, and that
increases the amount of moisture that are dragging back up
for the into it, and that's where it becomes tropical cyclone.
I think it's starting to build. So yeah, and the

(02:47):
winds are saying the winds will be tonight and tomorrow
around about one hundred and sixty five kilometers an hour.
So you know, it's it's it's on for youang and
hole here and credibly frightening quite on because you're just
not quite sure what's going to happen next.

Speaker 1 (03:02):
Yeah, apocalypse. Well, I don't want to paint too grimmer picture.
One of the reasons you're there is or was for
the twenty twenty five Xander McDonald Award Impact Summit. Now
that was due to start on Monday. I know a
lot of kiwis are flying over or we're going to
be flying over for that, but you've had to cancel that.

Speaker 2 (03:23):
Yeah, we've postponed it. Jamie will go out and announced
that he winners on Tuesday, but we had to postpone it.
We were watching this very very closely, and you can
imagine putting on a conference of that size takes a
hell of a lot of work an organization, and so
we didn't make that call lightly, but just absolutely for
the safety of everybody. The airports are closed here by

(03:44):
saying if the power goes down, that it'll be down
for as long as it's safe for the power people
to get back out and reinstate it, and that could
be days. So we had to make a call and
unfortunately we've had to postpone, but we will go ahead
at some point. But that was the smartest thing to
do given the circumstances we find ourselves in.

Speaker 1 (04:03):
I went onto your website this morning, the conference website,
and this is irony because you're saying, or the key
statement is welcome to the twenty twenty five Xander McDonald
Award Impact Summer, where innovation meets inspiration under the theme
Ride the Wave, Avoid the Rip.

Speaker 2 (04:21):
Yeah, we didn't know that quite we would quite have
this happening when we came up with that byeline, probably
about six months ago, Jamie. But I tell you what,
it couldn't be a truer statement. As we sit here today, amazing.
You know, they've still got professional surfers out, they toning
them out with jet ski's further up the beach to

(04:42):
towing them right out the back. And these guys are
still continuing to serve in these seas. It looked like
completely other madness to me. But I guess if you
know what you're doing so gay. But I think on
Lands a bitter spot to be well.

Speaker 1 (04:52):
Good luck over there and the eye of the storm,
the tropical cyclone, Alfred. I hope it doesn't smash you,
and we'll maybe on Tuesday show. Will we be naming
the Xander McDonald Award winners then.

Speaker 2 (05:05):
Yep, we will, Jamie. I look forward to being on
the show and announcing them with you then, so that'll
be a great moment.

Speaker 1 (05:13):
Well, God speed, Shane mcmanaway, keep safe and Lynette as well.

Speaker 2 (05:17):
Thank you Yeah, and thank you Jamie. Thanks for your concern.