Kalumburu (postcode 6740) and Kalumburu Community (formerly Drysdale River Mission) are both bounded localities within the Shire of Wyndham-East Kimberley in

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

. Kalumburu Community is the northernmost settlement in Western Australia. According to the 2011 census, it has a population of 412 people CC-BY icon

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and is inhabited mostly by

Aboriginal people Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...

from the Wunambal and Kwini language groups. Kalumburu Community is remote from any main roads – the nearest is the

Gibb River Road The Gibb River Road is a road in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. Description The road is a former cattle route that stretches in an east-west direction almost through the Kimberley between the towns of Derby and the Kununurra an ...

, 270 km to the south via the Kalumburu Road. It was the site of a

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

airbase, which was attacked by

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planes in 1943.

History

In 1905, the

Order of Saint Benedict , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

(OSB) decided to establish a mission near the

Drysdale River Drysdale River is a river in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. The river rises in the Caroline Ranges, flows in a northerly direction and discharges into Napier Broome Bay near Kalumburu. The river contains several permanent pools, ...

. The mission was established in 1908, 20 kilometres north-east of the present site, at Pago, near the southern end of Napier Broome Bay, by Benedictine

monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

s from

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. In 1937, water supply problems forced the missionaries to move to the present site at Kalumburu Pool, on the King Edward River.

World War II

Following the outbreak of World War II, the Australian government commissioned an airfield at the mission. After Japanese forces occupied the Dutch East Indies in 1942, Drysdale became a frontline

Royal Australian Air Force "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...

(RAAF) base, acting as a staging post for Allied squadrons based further south. The airfield was a refuelling and ammunition depot for the RAAF anti-submarine aircraft operating between Darwin and Fremantle. On 19 February, the mission provided assistance to the crew and passengers of the merchant vessel '' Koolama'', which had been attacked by Japanese planes. In February 1943, Allied signals intelligence suggested that Japanese aircraft would be built up in

Timor Timor is an island at the southern end of Maritime Southeast Asia, in the north of the Timor Sea. The island is divided between the sovereign states of East Timor on the eastern part and Indonesia on the western part. The Indonesian part, also ...

for attacks on Darwin. Eight Beaufighters from No. 31 Squadron RAAF were despatched to Drysdale River, to prepare for a pre-emptive strike. On 28 February, it was confirmed that the enemy aircraft had arrived at Penfui, near

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. An early morning strike destroyed 12 Japanese aircraft on the ground and damaged another 10. Two Beaufighters were damaged by Japanese fighter aircraft but returned to Drysdale River. On 27 September 1943, the base and settlement were attacked by 21 Japanese

Kawasaki Ki-48 The Kawasaki Ki-48 ( ja, 九九式雙發輕爆擊機, shiki-souhatu-keibaku, shortened to 'Sokei', Army Type 99 Twin-engined Light Bomber), was a Japanese twin-engine light bomber that was used during World War II. Its Allied reporting name was ...

bombers, based at Kupang, Timor, with a fighter escort. The Superior of the mission, Father Thomas Gil O.S.B, aged 45 years, and five Aboriginal people ranging from the age of 1 to 45 years were killed. This included a mother and son. All victims were buried together on mission grounds, the Aboriginal people on either side of Father Thomas, following the funeral at the damaged church. Many buildings at the mission were also destroyed or severely damaged during the raid. In April 1944, Flt Lt D. S. Askew, the commanding officer of No. 58 Operational Base Unit, reported 367 aircraft movements during that month, the busiest period since operations had begun. He also wrote: "Approximately 250 operational hours were flown from Drysdale resulting in approximately 60,000 lb of bombs being dropped on enemy territory". The military significance of the airfield declined once Truscott Airfield was constructed, about 32 km (20 mi) north, in 1944.

Post-war

In 1951, Drysdale River Mission was officially renamed Kalumburu. Management of the community was later taken over by Kalumburu Aboriginal Corporation, on behalf of the Kalumburu Community Council. The community retains strong links with the OSB, including a priest and several Benedictine nuns.

Medical services

Kalumburu is 568 km via a poor quality road to the nearest hospital. During the dry season, this takes about 12 hours. There is a small clinic staffed by two remote area nurses with a visiting doctor once per week. This community has been extensively studied and is the subject of publications in regards to Aboriginal health (e.g. trachoma and kidney disease). In 2008 a new clinic was being built, in collaboration with the Australian Army and Western Australia Health. There is provision for a small dialysis unit, although staffing and equipment are yet to be finalized. The

Royal Flying Doctor Service The Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS), commonly known as the Flying Doctor, is an air medical service in Australia. It is a non-profit organisation that provides emergency and primary health care services for those living in rural, remote an ...

land on the Kalumburu strip to the north of the town. There is also the old Truscott Airbase which can be used in cases of emergency.

Population

According to the 2016 census of Population, there were 412 people in Kalumburu. * Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 91.4% of the population. * 97.3% of people were born in Australia and 88.1% of people spoke only English at home. * The most common response for religion was Catholic at 89.5%.

Town planning

Kalumburu Layout Plan No.2 was prepared in accordance with State Planning Policy 3.2 Aboriginal Settlements. Layout Plan No.2 was endorsed by the community in 2004 and the

Western Australian Planning Commission The Western Australian Planning Commission (WAPC) is an independent statutory authority of the Government of Western Australia that exists to coordinate strategic and statutory planning for future urban, rural and regional land use. The authori ...

in 2005. The layout plan map-set and background report can be viewed at Planning Western Australia's website.

Climate

The Köppen–Geiger climate classification system classifies its climate as

tropical savanna Tropical and subtropical grasslands, savannas, and shrublands is a terrestrial biome defined by the World Wide Fund for Nature. The biome is dominated by grass and/or shrubs located in semi-arid to semi-humid climate regions of subtropical and t ...

(''Aw'') with very hot daytime temperatures year round and cool winter nighttime temperatures.