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Prince William meets Victoria flood victims | |
(about 6 hours later) | |
Prince William has met victims of the devastating floods which hit Victoria two months ago, on the last leg of his tour of New Zealand and Australia. | |
In Kerang, in the southern Australian state, he met emergency service leaders before visiting a farm which was left under water by January's deluge. | |
The prince told locals they had done "a marvellous job" to recover since then. | |
Earlier in the trip, he spent time with New Zealanders affected by last month's Christchurch earthquake. | |
The prince was greeted by hundreds of well-wishers in Kerang on Monday, before attending a briefing on the flood rescue work with Victoria state premier Ted Bailleau. | |
He then travelled by helicopter to a dairy farm in nearby Benjeroop, where the owners have only just been able to return. | |
William ended his day - and his three-day tour - with a barbecue in the small Murray River town of Murrabit. | |
'Smiles on faces' | |
On Sunday, the prince visited communities in the state of Queensland which were hit by their own floods, as well as Cyclone Yasi. | |
Around 30,000 homes and businesses were destroyed and 35 people died in the disasters. | |
Paul Pisasale, mayor of Ipswich - one of the worst hit towns - told reporters: "He's been putting smiles on people's faces, he's really been reaching out to people." | |
At a fundraising event in Brisbane later on Sunday, Prince William praised all those involved in trying to save lives. | |
"As a search and rescue pilot myself, I am full of admiration for their courage and skill," he said. "Queenslanders are renowned for their true grit, for their resilience and courage. | |
"On behalf of the Queen, the Prince of Wales and other members of my family, I would like to extend heartfelt condolences to all in Australia who have lost family members and friends in these terrible natural disasters." | |
Meanwhile, Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard was asked on Australia's Sky News if the country would be a republic by the time Prince William became King. | Meanwhile, Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard was asked on Australia's Sky News if the country would be a republic by the time Prince William became King. |
"It's not a debate at the forefront of our national conversations at the moment, but I believe it will return," she said. | "It's not a debate at the forefront of our national conversations at the moment, but I believe it will return," she said. |
"But I'm not going to make any date predictions on either the ascension to the throne of Prince William or the date of this nation becoming a republic," the prime minister added. | "But I'm not going to make any date predictions on either the ascension to the throne of Prince William or the date of this nation becoming a republic," the prime minister added. |