In these times of floods, and the 24 hour news coverage thereof, I thought it might be interesting to look at how our parents and grandparents coped with the devastation. How did they get their information? In the days before satellite communication the only way to find out about about friends and relatives, or even their own property or the status of the water flows, was over the wireless, or to rely on phone lines that were likely to be damaged. The cinemas used newsreels but these often arrived to local theatres days, or weeks, after the events. The link below has a newsreel from the devastating Hunter Valley Floods of 1952.
AUSTRALIA'S FLOOD HAVOC - British Pathe
