We have been reminded lately, that war brings with it a vicarious and pervasive sense of unease - even to those fortunate enough to be far removed from the direct line of fire.
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This sense of unease was brought to Australia with the bombing of Darwin on February 19th, 1942.
On July 25th, as a near full-moon afforded clear visibility of the land below, air-raid sirens sounded, lights were extinguished, and Townsville fell silent. It would be an arduous twenty minutes before the first Japanese aircraft were spotted in the moonlight.
Towns and cities around Australia readied themselves for a darkened world after dusk.
Beaudesert, too, prepared itself.
As reported in the Beaudesert Times, a town meeting was held on Thursday September 18, 1941 to establish the town's Air Raid Wardens' Association with a mandate to "control the population in air raids and prevent panic."
H. Selwin Smith assumed the role of Chief Warden; other wardens included H.A. Lahey, T.J. Enright, C. D. Persse and N. McGovern.
A black-out drill involving the entirety of South East Queensland had been arranged for the following Sunday. It would be the first of five which preceded a 12,502 square mile blackout from Bundaberg to Coolangatta.
Commencing at 9.15pm, a succession of short blasts from a single siren positioned at the highest point in Anna Street would signal the warning that all traffic must be stopped and parked.
At 9.30 all street lights would be extinguished and a fluctuating note lasting three minutes would warn residents to retire to a prepared room, ensuring no light was visible from outside, where only wardens were permitted. Two minutes of a continuous note at 10pm would signal that the 'raiders' had passed and lights were allowed to return.
Constable Day of Brisbane had assured the meeting that "anyone who won't co-operate is either not loyal, or not all there".
Unfortunately, co-operation is difficult when half the town is unable to hear the siren and it was not until June the following year that four new battery operated sirens were more strategically positioned at the State Rural School, Queensland National Bank, the Butter Factory and T.J. Enright's residence.
Being less strict that Britain's blackout laws, Australia's "brown-out" was declared in the Beaudesert Times on Friday March 20th, 1942:
"This week, all street lights in Beaudesert have been turned out".
The lights were to remain out except at the intersection of William and Brisbane Streets. Shop lighting was reduced and all external lighting was extinguished on signs and at medical surgeries, hospitals, hotels, shops and halls. All internal lights must be screened and all vehicle lights, including emergency services, must be shielded.
By August, the Beaudesert Times reported a complaint to the Minister of Civil Defence, Ned Hanlon, from the Chamber of Commerce, declaring the brown-out rules too harsh.
A town largely devoid of light after dark was a dangerous place indeed.
In Beaudesert, a young woman had been killed by a motor truck, one had been knocked down by a bicycle and a group of pedestrians had narrowly missed being struck when a car driving by shielded lights failed to observe a stop sign at the corner of Eaglesfield and Brisbane Streets.
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Improved lighting to "relieve the very depressing and dangerous conditions in Beaudesert" reported in The Times in July 1942, was no doubt welcome news when the Minister for Home Security H.P Lazzarini announced the relaxation of brown-out laws in January 1943. The pervasive sense of unease, however, remained, as residents were reminded the threat to Australia was far from over, and Beaudesert, as all towns, must be prepared to be thrown into black-out at a moment's notice.
