Tuesday October 2nd - WE ARE OUT!!!!!

Yesterday at around 1.30pm we were all told that we could go home! That was a moment I clearly wasn't prepared for, and burst into tears and hysterically screaming!!!

The mad rush of cleaning up and packing began and the mood was electric....... although we were told we can't all leave at once and that the process would take up to a week until we could all get out.... A list was constructed and our days and times allocated. A HUGE thank you to those who decided that Nic and I could be the first vehicle to leave.

A few hours later, some truly horrible news came in; the NSW horse owners were told they could not go and would have to stay up to another two weeks! This was shattering for all involved and our hearts just went out to them. The mood dropped and we all tried hard to console those who have to organise their lives for another two weeks.

We did however have to get ourselves ready for the enormous task that lay ahead...getting out!

After the third DPI meeting, and the third change of requirements, I thought we were ready to go!!! We were all handed a time table of when each vehicle and horse was expected to be ready for release and it allowed no time for the ill prepared!!! 15 minutes was allocated for each vehicle leaving. In this time you had to have your vehicle sprayed and inspected, horse/s down to the loading yards, all your documentation in order, load up and move out of the way for the next vehicle. WOW we were all doing our very best to have everything in order, and I thought that we would be more than prepared until we were told at 8 50am, (our time being 9 00am...) that the rugs, buckets, feed bins, and boots that we had used that last night not only had to be clean, but also de-contaminated!! Poor Colin was left to do all this by himself as I was stuck in the yards with the horses. So, after a few words about the lack of DPI organisation and communication, Col dipped all of our gear, packed it and made his way over for loading.

At exactly 9 06am Zac and Milo left Morgan Park and headed for home. I waved goodbye to our new friends, made my way through the frenzy of media and with Colin, we drove the boys home to their waiting lush paddocks at the Tough's.

Nicole T was there to greet us, and we both couldn't wait to put our boys in their paddocks. I am not sure what they felt, but I know we both felt at peace for the first time in a long time, our boys were finally home and safe.

As I sit here and reflect on the ordeal we just endured, I am so disheartened by the fact that it appeared to be all in vain. With now only kilometers between home and the virus' current position, we now brace for the remainder of our horses to be infected. I am so gutted. My daughter, Emily’s, little pony is 30 years old and didn’t pull through winter as good as I would have liked. I just pray that he will make it through this without too much stress and severity. I know that we have all have been affected by this terrible mistake. It feels like Nic and I have done our fair share of time, yet we are about to go through it all over again; but a least we are at home and not having to commute and have our lives in complete disarray. I am trying so hard not to place blame for this outbreak and I guess those responsible know who they are, and their torture would be unbearable.

I sit at my computer at home now, in tears, with my two gorgeous children climbing all over me. I feel so emotional. Our lives have been in so much uncertainty that I am not sure what to do, now that we are out.

Both Nic and I thank our wonderful families for their unbelievable support, my Dad who just retired and my Mum who have been at home with my two kids and Colin juggling work and Mitch with all his extra activities; and Nic and Colin's parents who also were available at any time. To Karen and Kyla, who were part of our 3 man team, helped us through our time at Warwick. They returned home with Kyla's horse, Amie, and are also overwhelmed with emotion.

Nic and I have a list of people we want to thank. Without these people, we would not have made it and we wish a safe journey home for everyone.

Nic M

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WE'RE HOME!!!

Given official word yesterday after lunch that "the Morgan Park Lockdown is officially over," everyone was overjoyed and continued with the monumental job of packing up!

Nicole M, Kyla and I were lucky enough to live within 3 hours driving time and implemented a rotor system of caring for each others horses. We were a great team, and cannot thank each other enough for looking after each others horses.

Lunchtime today - I waited patiently for the gooseneck to make the turn into our driveway, and was relieved to finally free Milo and Zac into their paddocks. Both horses had a run around their paddock and then dropped their heads for grass!! If these 2 horses were joined at the hip before Warwick - it is quite a serious attachment now.....

To Simon and Cherie Pye who let us out first cab off the rank - THANK YOU!!!!

We have SO many thank you's to give out - so please bear with us;

To the Morgan Park Town Council! - Simon, Cherie and all the gang in the office who undertook all the thankless and huge organisational tasks - an enormous thank you! You guys ran Morgan Park Town like clockwork - (politicians take note!!) We were a small community of people in an enclosed, artificial environment and you never wavered in and helping each and every one of us deal everything that was thrown at us!

To the QLD Government for all their support! You have my vote!!

To the "Coast to Coast with Golden Roast" catering company, thank you for taking on this enormous task and looking after us all so admirably!

To Warren Morris from Furney's Produce, who was brave enough to tackle the enormous task of feeding 256 sick horses - and he always greeted you with a smile on his face! ALWAYS..... Thank you Warren for getting us everything our horses needed over the 6 weeks of incarceration!

To Sandra Opperman extra-curricular organiser extrodinaire! Sandra always had an activity planned to keep us all from going barmy!! What energy she has!!

To David Lyons - the stable manager, who made sure the stables ran smoothly, and had his eyes peeled for prevention of accidents all the time! He was always there to lend a hand - even at 2am in the morning when I so desperately needed him when Kyla’s horse, Amy was stuck between 2 stables. He ensured shade for the horses, sawdust, rubber lining, hoses were operational and reached all the yards and boxes. His never wavered in his dedication to the horses. Thanks David!

To the farriers, Peter O'Shea and Luke Riding, who got stuck in Warwick and made the best of it! Thanks for looking after the horses guys! and for helping out everywhere else!!

To Wazza - "the Tractor man" who delivered our sawdust and kept the place so tidy, we could have won the Morgan Park Tidy Town award!! Thanks Wazza!

To our friendly security man at the gate, who always carried our carrots in through the gates, and has something against Volvos??? or is it Volvo drivers??

To the DPI staff - thanks for putting up with us whinging.... and asking the never ending question - "does this have to be sprayed as well?"

To Coprice Feeds for the washing machines!! They were a Godsend!!

Thank you to an amazing International team of vets! They didn’t just treat our horses – they cared for them.

To the people and businesses of Warwick for all your donations and support. What a great town!

Thankyou to Angela McLeish at Mitavite and Don Campbell from Hygain who gave us so much feed in the initial panic and lockdown, and for checking up on us and our horses throughout! and to Horseland - Gold Coast, for getting us whatever the horses needed!

To our families for putting up with us, and helping us with the never ending task of caring for our children! and of course THANK YOU to our children for remembering who we are!!!!

Thank you to Tracy Mayhew and Cyberhorse for printing our diary entries. They helped keep us sane!

AND last but not least - to the community of Morgan Park Town, thank you all for making us feel like part of the family, and always keeping your spirits up. I hope having 2 dressage fanatics in your community was an enlightening experience?? We're not that bad!! (I hope!)

To the NSW people still in lockdown for another 2 weeks – I am sorry we can’t be there with you to help. Hang in there! ---------------------

So we're finally home and EI is literally on our doorstep! AND unbelievably, it's about to begin all over again! We all need to work together to get through this social and economic disaster.

The DPI know the EI virus has slipped by them getting into Australia, and evaded them every step of the way. They are contributing $200 towards horses with secondary complications on positive tested properties. They are vaccinating a 50km radius around infected areas. (We must remember that vaccination takes 4 weeks to take effect, and the virus is moving 10km per week. This is why the 50km radius is the only viable option.) They have chosen to vaccinate high priority horses inside these buffer zones, to try and save as many people’s livelihoods as they can – like the Australian Outback Spectacular horses, the Mounted Police horses and the Race horses.

I don’t know how long we can keep going without income – but we all just have to maintain the standstill somehow, pray the 50km buffer zones work, and wait til this virus dies out.

I certainly hope the Racing Industry will review their stance on Artificial Insemination, and that Quarantine at Eastern Creek is severely tightened!! Let us learn something from this disaster.

This is from the 2 Nicole’s (Nicole Tough and Nicole Magoffin) signing off from Morgan Park Town…… Thank you.

Note: I'd just like to thank the 2 Nicoles for their insightful and informative reports over the last couple of months - it really does give a 'face' to the tragedy that the equine industry is currently experiencing. From all of us here at Cyberhorse, "Welcome home and thank you for all your brilliant stories!"  Tracy Mayhew 

Photos from 'Morgan Park Town' Quarantine

Go to the Archived reports from the 2 Nicoles stationed at Warwick.

Nicole Tough Media Release