31 May 2009

Exploding post box of Chifley

| Quokka
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During the course of my travels I stumbled across this obviously defunct post box in Chifley and wondered if anybody knew the story. An ambivalent poster who submitted a sensitive document and then decided that they desperately needed to retrieve it? Kids with fireworks? A small-scale terrorist inspired by the concept of “think globally, act locally”?

Any musings would assist in alleviating my curiosity…

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My friend at work told me today that she generally puts an ice cream contain full of water in her letter box over the Queen’s Birthday long weekend to deter would be vandals. It worked till she forgot to take it out and her mail got soggy 🙂

Apparently the post box was also blown up in 2007. Might be worth giving that particular box a miss around this time of year if you value your mail!

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/04/11/1894081.htm

CoffeeGeek said :

A “firecracker”?

Me thinks not. Anything that can do that sort of steel tearing/bending damage is no longer a “firecracker”. Unless it was homemade…

you speak the truth!

postalgeek said

Postalgeek said :

Someone probably wrote an angry letter to the editor which went off prematurely.

That one wins!

Damn, I wish I’d thought of that years ago. I could’ve made a fortune selling prop blown up letterboxes. Ah well.

jessieduck said :

Emlyn is probably putting together a racial profile of the offenders that she can share with us later.

don’t say that! oh, dear, perhaps she didn’t hear you…

farnarkler said :

Better still, have a fake blown up letterbox which you can substitute for your real one for Saturday night.

+1 Great idea.

Emlyn Ward said :

This is amazingly dangerous and should be treated as equivalent to a drive-by shooting.

Of course, the police have to concentrate on pointlessly booking motorists for minor infringements before bothering to investigate and suppress actual life-threatening criminals acts such as these.

Are you of the opinion that speeding and drink driving are minor infringements ? You and or someone you love are more likely to be killed or injured as a result of these than an exploding letter box. It may have been terrifying however there is a big picture of resource allocation. We do need more police out on the road.

Better still, have a fake blown up letterbox which you can substitute for your real one for Saturday night.

Tie a large, angry rottweiler to your letterbox.

Emlyn is probably putting together a racial profile of the offenders that she can share with us later.

Emlyn Ward said :

They blew up my letterbox about 6 months ago.
The debris from the explosion punched a hole through the roof of my house.

This is amazingly dangerous and should be treated as equivalent to a drive-by shooting.

Of course, the police have to concentrate on pointlessly booking motorists for minor infringements before bothering to investigate and suppress actual life-threatening criminals acts such as these.

what would you have them do? foot patrols through the streets every night with a lockdown curfew and shoot anyone out after curfew is called?

The police have a finite number of members. they are doing a good thing getting the DUIs, speeders and other stupid drivers off the roads, and are busting druggies all over town. One letterbox being blown up 6-months ago is not going to get a police crackdown on these behaviours. 30 or 40 letterboxes would see a far greater interest.

They blew up my letterbox about 6 months ago.
The debris from the explosion punched a hole through the roof of my house.

This is amazingly dangerous and should be treated as equivalent to a drive-by shooting.

Of course, the police have to concentrate on pointlessly booking motorists for minor infringements before bothering to investigate and suppress actual life-threatening criminals acts such as these.

A “firecracker”?

Me thinks not. Anything that can do that sort of steel tearing/bending damage is no longer a “firecracker”. Unless it was homemade, in which case we have a *temporary citizen* amongst us.

I’d place solid money on it being oxy/acetylene, which would make you lean towards plumbing apprentices who have a driving license.

BTW, has anyone else noticed their ATM blowing a gentle breeze out of the card slot? Maybe Austpost needs to put some forced ventilation into the post boxes?

Unfortunately its a common occurence. While I was working for Oz Post last year, had a new box put in just near where I worked that was blown up within a couple of days of it being installed. They didn’t do a very good job however, just shoved the crackers in the tray instead of emptying the tray into the main part, but still made a nice little mess.

There were also a couple of other ones blown up within the lead up to Christmas. Nearly always seems to be done with firecrackers and it is just stupid behaviour. It is very annoying as well, epsecially for those that have just posted mail in the box and for those at Australia Post who have to deal with those people, who are justifiably upset.

Someone probably wrote an angry letter to the editor which went off prematurely.

p1 said :

Someone practicing their oxygen and acetalyne mix before trying it on an ATM?

You sound like an expert 😉

The fireworks started up last weekend, must be a coincidence that Queens Birthday is coming up next weekend and the suppliers must be getting stock in..

And we all pay for it.

Someone practicing their oxygen and acetalyne mix before trying it on an ATM?

This is not an isolated incident, the post box on Knoke Avenue Gordon was blown apart in the same manner some time last week. I personally think it is a pretty dangerous practice, pieces of the box can seperate from the main body with potentially lethal results.

I took the photo mid-morning on Saturday so presumably the post box was blown up sometime on Friday night.

I thought I heard fireworks or maybe a car backfiring in Chifley last night. Maybe this was it?

Maybe Aus Post just couldn’t find the key?

Is this a recent photo?, I live in Chifley and drove past there this morning. I didn’t see it in that state. I know this post box has been blown up before approximately 1 ro 2 years ago. My wife had various parcels (or at least the pieces that were left) posted back to her by the police about a year later. They had held them as evidence in the interim.

gun street girl12:22 pm 31 May 09

Effing little vandals. My bet is that it was kids with crackers. Am especially peeved, given that I posted something there on Friday.

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