Karumba is a town and a coastal

locality Locality may refer to: * Locality (association), an association of community regeneration organizations in England * Locality (linguistics) * Locality (settlement) * Suburbs and localities (Australia), in which a locality is a geographic subdivis ...

in the

Shire of Carpentaria The Shire of Carpentaria is a local government area in Far North Queensland, Australia on the Gulf of Carpentaria, for which it is named. Geography The Shire of Carpentaria covers an area of , and has existed as a local government entity sinc ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...

, Australia. In the , the locality of Karumba had a population of 531 people.

Geography

Karumba is in the

Gulf Country The Gulf Country is the region of woodland and savanna grassland surrounding the Gulf of Carpentaria in north western Queensland and eastern Northern Territory on the north coast of Australia. The region is also called the Gulf Savannah. It ...

region of

, by road from Normanton and from the state capital,

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...

. Karumba is within the Shire of Carpentaria, the administrative headquarters of which is in Normanton. The town is sited at the mouth of the

Norman River The Norman River is a river in the Gulf Country, Queensland, Australia. The river originates in the Gregory Range 200 km southeast of Croydon and flows 420 km northwest to the Gulf of Carpentaria. It is joined by three major tributari ...

, and enjoys the distinction of being the only town along the southern

Gulf of Carpentaria The Gulf of Carpentaria (, ) is a large, shallow sea enclosed on three sides by northern Australia and bounded on the north by the eastern Arafura Sea (the body of water that lies between Australia and New Guinea). The northern boundary i ...

that is within sight of the Gulf itself (the Gulf's extensive

tidal flat Mudflats or mud flats, also known as tidal flats or, in Ireland, slob or slobs, are coastal wetlands that form in intertidal areas where sediments have been deposited by tides or rivers. A global analysis published in 2019 suggested that tidal fl ...

s prohibits settlement elsewhere along its shore). The rare Morning Glory cloud rolls through Karumba in the early hours of some mornings in September and October. Karumba Airport is on Fielding Street. There are no regular commercial services from this airport; the nearest regular services are available at Normanton Airport.

History

The settlement was previously known as Norman Mouth and Kimberley. The

toponym Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of ''toponyms'' ( proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage and types. Toponym is the general term for a proper name of ...

derives from the Kareldi native name, ''Kurumba'', who were the indigenous landholders of this area before the onset of white colonization and expropriation. This name was officially used for the township by the 1880s. Karumba Post Office opened on 22 August 1889 and closed in 1919. Given its access to the Gulf of Carpentaria, the town's economy has revolved largely around fishing. The prawn industry expanded in the 1960s. In the late 1930s, the town was a refueling and maintenance stop for the

flying boat A flying boat is a type of fixed-winged seaplane with a hull, allowing it to land on water. It differs from a floatplane in that a flying boat's fuselage is purpose-designed for floatation and contains a hull, while floatplanes rely on fuselag ...

s of the

Qantas Empire Airways Qantas Airways Limited ( ) is the flag carrier of Australia and the country's largest airline by fleet size, international flights, and international destinations. It is the world's third-oldest airline still in operation, having been founde ...

. No. 43 Squadron of the RAAF also operated

Consolidated PBY Catalina The Consolidated PBY Catalina is a flying boat and amphibious aircraft that was produced in the 1930s and 1940s. In Canadian service it was known as the Canso. It was one of the most widely used seaplanes of World War II. Catalinas served wi ...

flying boats from the town between June 1943 and April 1944. Karumba State School opened in September 1968. Regular services by the

Uniting Church in Australia The Uniting Church in Australia (UCA) was founded on 22 June 1977, when most congregations of the Methodist Church of Australasia, about two-thirds of the Presbyterian Church of Australia and almost all the churches of the Congregational Uni ...

are held in the Community Church. These are provided by the McKay Patrol, an aerial service of the

that operates out of

Cloncurry Cloncurry is a rural town and locality in the Shire of Cloncurry, Queensland, Australia. In the the locality of Cloncurry had a population of 2,719 people. Cloncurry is the administrative centre of the Shire of Cloncurry. Cloncurry is known a ...

. Supported by other denominations, the McKay Patrol operates a Cessna 182Q aeroplane to provide spiritual and practical help to people living in remote areas in the north-west of Queensland and the eastern Tablelands of the

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory shares its borders with Western Aust ...

, an area of approximately with a population of less than 10,000 people. Karumba Public Library was opened in 1979. The region is repeatedly mentioned in the song "Every Passing Day" by Australian band

Goanna A goanna is any one of several species of lizards of the genus '' Varanus'' found in Australia and Southeast Asia. Around 70 species of ''Varanus'' are known, 25 of which are found in Australia. This varied group of carnivorous reptiles ranges ...

on their album ''Oceania''. In the , Karumba had a population of 518. The

Red Hot Chili Peppers Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1983, comprising vocalist Anthony Kiedis, bassist Flea, drummer Chad Smith, and guitarist John Frusciante. Their music incorporates elements of alternative rock, funk ...

' song "Animal Bar" from their 2006 album ''

Stadium Arcadium ''Stadium Arcadium'' is the ninth studio album by American rock band Red Hot Chili Peppers. It was a double-album released on May 5, 2006, on Warner Bros. Records. It produced five singles: "Dani California", " Tell Me Baby", " Snow (Hey Oh)", " ...

'' is about Karumba. It is named after a bar called the Animal Bar. In the , the locality of Karumba had a population of 531 people.

Economy

The Karumba port services the Century Zinc Mine as well as fishing industry. The prawning industry makes an important economic contribution to the town.

Education

Karumba State School is a government primary (Prep-6) school for boys and girls at 5 Yappar Street (). In 2018, the school had an enrolment of 28 students with 3 teachers and 7 non-teaching staff (4 full-time equivalent). There are no secondary schools in Karumba. The nearest government secondary school is Normanton State School (to Year 10) in neighbouring Normanton to the south. There are no schools offering secondary education to Year 12 in Karumba or nearby; the options are

distance education Distance education, also known as distance learning, is the education of students who may not always be physically present at a school, or where the learner and the teacher are separated in both time and distance. Traditionally, this usually in ...

or boarding school.

Amenities

Karumba has a public library in Walker Street, visitor information centre, parks, bowls club, golf course, swimming pool, and a sports centre. The

Carpentaria Shire Council The Shire of Carpentaria is a local government area in Far North Queensland, Australia on the Gulf of Carpentaria, for which it is named. Geography The Shire of Carpentaria covers an area of , and has existed as a local government entity si ...

operates a public library at Walker Street. St James' and St John's Community Church at 59 Yappar Street is shared by the Anglican, Catholic and Uniting congregations. It is within the Gulf Savannah Parish of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Cairns. Regular services by the

are held in the Community Church. These are provided by the McKay Patrol, an aerial service of the

that operates out of

, an area of approximately with a population of less than 10,000 people.

Climate

Karumba has a

tropical savanna climate Tropical savanna climate or tropical wet and dry climate is a tropical climate sub-type that corresponds to the Köppen climate classification categories ''Aw'' (for a dry winter) and ''As'' (for a dry summer). The driest month has less than of ...

( Köppen ''Aw'') with two distinct seasons. The “ Wet” usually lasts from December to March and is extremely hot and humid, with

wet bulb temperature The wet-bulb temperature (WBT) is the temperature read by a thermometer covered in water-soaked (water at ambient temperature) cloth (a wet-bulb thermometer) over which air is passed. At 100% relative humidity, the wet-bulb temperature is equal ...

s typically above during the afternoons. Most roads during the “Wet” are usually closed by heavy rain, which can exceed in a day due to the passage of

tropical cyclone A tropical cyclone is a rapidly rotating storm system characterized by a low-pressure center, a closed low-level atmospheric circulation, strong winds, and a spiral arrangement of thunderstorms that produce heavy rain and squalls. Dep ...

s or monsoonal depressions which provide most of the rain. On occasions, however, as with all of Queensland the wet season may fail almost completely and produce less than in a full season. The “Dry” usually lasts from April to the middle of November and is much more comfortable due to lower humidity and milder morning temperatures. This period of the year is essentially bone dry and almost completely cloudless:

median In statistics and probability theory, the median is the value separating the higher half from the lower half of a data sample, a population, or a probability distribution. For a data set, it may be thought of as "the middle" value. The basic f ...

rainfall is nil between May and September and over twenty days each month are completely clear.

References

External links

University of Queensland: Queensland Places: Karumbamorningglorycloud.com
has video of the Gulf of Carpentaria region and the Morning Glory Cloud
Carpentaria Shire Council homepageTown map of Karumba, 1979
{{Authority control Towns in Queensland Coastal towns in Queensland North West Queensland Gulf of Carpentaria Shire of Carpentaria Fishing communities in Australia Localities in Queensland