Carlo and
Warwick were Mission Engineers with ESA (the European Space Agency) and were in Australia in 2009 holidaying after the successful launch of the Rosetta Space craft in 2004. It was a few days before the end of October and it was brutally hot though not unusual as the wet season was already brewing, big clouds high humidity but no meaningful rain. They were travelling solo, driving a Nissan Navara hunting Meteorite
rock from around the newly discovered impact site at
Hickman Crater when they came into vehicle trouble and the vehicle stopped with a damaged sump and seized engine.
ExplorOz Member, and then local Tag Along 4WD Tour Guide Joe Fury from
Newman just happened to come along the track behind them with a couple of city based Indigenous people on a personal charter tour looking at some petroglyph sites. They were astonished to see another vehicle and very concerned to learn they were stranded. Obviously they stopped to give assistance.
Joe tells the story like this:
"I convinced them to reposition the Navara just off the track proper, set it up so they could access the holed sump, then for them to clean the area around the gash - the preparation had to be good enough for a repair using a two part epoxy bonding agent known a KNEED IT ~ I never leave
home without a couple of tubes of it. The preparation/clean up was left to them, I continued on to
the Crater with my guests, on our return journey Carlo and
Warwick were waiting for what might have been good news, but I suggested they
camp the night with their vehicle and that I would return 'some time tomorrow' and after the sump was repaired and new oil added we could travel out together, Carlo was not too keen on being out there in the dark, especially after being warned about the wild dogs and other critters that want to come and roost up with you in the dead of night ~ I did say to Richard, my guest that he'd laid it on just a tad too thick."
Joe returned the follow day to assist with a repair. He got them to
the crater and then he escorted them back to
Newman. Joe made and left the
sign at this spot "Carlo &
Warwick's Camp".
If you go to the Hickman Meteorite Crater the letterbox containing the visitors log book has been created and cared for by Joe Fury. It contains useful documents to help you understand the site and Joe remains in contact with Hickman himself to give updates/
feedback on the area.