Pumphouse Point owner tells of ordeal as hotel guests left stuck after Tasmanian snowfall
Eight hotel guests were stuck at wilderness retreat Pumphouse Point at Lake St Clair this week, as metre-high snow blocked access to staff and patrons were asked to pay for extra accommodation.
Pumphouse Point owner and outgoing Tourism Council chair Simon Currant said the power had failed and roads were blocked around the Lake St Clair area during what was one of Tasmania's biggest snow events in almost 30 years.
"We've had people who had just stayed one or possibly two nights more than they wanted to but it was completely and obviously beyond our control," Mr Currant told Ryk Goddard on 936 ABC Hobart's Breakfast program.
"We had people stuck that couldn't get into the park at Lake St Clair, or at Derwent Bridge who couldn't come into Pumphouse Point, so we're still copping it."
Mr Currant said the stranded guests were asked to pay for the extra nights of accommodation, even though the weather left them with little alternative than to stay.
"We do ask them to pay, that's a normal practice," he said.
"I developed Cradle Mountain Lodge for many years and that's the same in all alpine areas throughout Australia and other places in the world."
Making the most of a snowy situation
Although the retreat has a back-up generator used for emergency services, there was a fuel shortage due to blocked roads that needed to be cleared in the blizzard conditions.
"We had a fuel delivery coming on Monday and of course that couldn't come," Mr Currant said.
"We've got four-wheel drives there but if you can get out to Derwent Bridge, that's one thing.
"You've still got 100 kilometres of public roads that are blocked ... there's still a lot of ice on the road."
Mr Currant said it was hard to keep the guests directly informed but staff tried to update the next guests of the inaccessibility of the retreat via website and social media updates.
"We've had power now for days and that's not the issue, it's really about access via the roads and that's the same for the Cynthia Bay sensor," he said.
"Obviously we also had helicopters on standby that could get them there in the event of an emergency even in the worst weather.
"The rangers were fantastic, they helped numerous people and towed them out and all that sort of thing.
"Everyone pulls together and makes as much fun of it as you can and enjoy what's there, 'we're stuck and we can't move'."
Mr Currant admitted he had not had much sleep after working tirelessly to try and improve the situation, but the staff were all smiles as they battled through it.
"We learned a few lessons from it," he said.
"On the whole it was a great experience in some ways, in others it was very harrowing not knowing what was coming up."
Still under thick snow, roads have since reopened for four-wheel drive cars to access the area.
Source: ABC News, Damien Peck, 7th August 2015
Originally published as: Pumphouse Point owner tells of ordeal as hotel guests left stuck after Tasmanian snowfall
