The hotel rooms are vacant, the cafes are empty and the only road into this coastal hamlet is impassable. Tourist operators in Australia's far north are now questioning how they will survive.
For three months, Julian and Jackie Pagani have been burning hundreds of litres of fuel a day to power a campsite no-one can visit.
Cape Tribulation has no mains power so for the Paganis, powering the campground is an expense that doesn't stop — even if the tourists do. About 170 family and friends were ferried in on a commercial reef tourism boat, cutlery and dinnerware was borrowed from nearby resorts, and food and drinks purchased from local businesses."We had planned our wedding a long time ago and we weren't going to let the cyclone stop us," Ms Pagani said.
"I've spoken to many people around town and we all have similar stories, the phones aren't running hot, " Mr Bryce said. Local mayor Michael Kerr said council was working through the water issues and restoring road access to Cape Tribulation with the help of the Department of Transport and Main Roads."It's important to remember we are still open for business. The bars, cafes, restaurants, the reef tours, they are all open and if you love the tropics, please come and see us," Mr Kerr said.
However, a sprinkling of international tourists have found their way to the region despite the hurdles.English visitor Paul Oakley said he and his wife were aware of the natural disasters but chose to forge ahead with their journey and hadn't been disappointed.
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