ONCE they were a symbol of a region’s wealth and prosperity. A silent sentinel.
Today, the humble grain silo is fast disappearing from South Australia’s landscape. Some people have compared their loss to that of local banks and other high-profile institutions, such is their significance to the community.
Dotted along nearly every major highway and byway across the state, the sight of a towering silo on the horizon is a sign to a weary long-distance traveller that some level of civilisation is usually not far away. To a local they are a comforting sign that they are nearly home after a long trip to ‘town’.
Since 2019, grain handling company Viterra has systematically ‘mothballed”, then permanently closed at least 16 silo sites across the state.
Now those same silent sentinels of reinforced concrete and steel, monoliths, that tower over the grain growing regions are disappearing at a rapid rate.
The silos, that for years have dominated the skyline of the mid north towns of Long Plains, Mallala and Hamley Bridge, are no more.
Of the three, Long Plains’ was brought down first at the end of October 2022 followed by those at Mallala in early November and Hamley Bridge later that same month. All sites had not been used for some years and required maintenance.
In 2021, Viterra also demolished similar infrastructure on the Eyre Peninsula at Wudinna and Lock. In a letter dated September 19, 2022 to residents of Hamley Bridge and signed by Alistair Ryan,
Viterra’s general manager, maintenance and engineering, stated that the reason for their destruction was “the site infrastructure is rundown and poses potential safety risks…”.
Works at the site were scheduled to take 13 weeks, with Viterra salvaging plant and machinery for spare parts. Concrete and steel would be reclaimed and recycled. A nearby galvanised iron storage bunker was due to meet the wrecker’s ball in the same time frame.
Hamley Bridge resident Ian Rycroft worked for the railways and shunted grain trains at the silos in their heyday. When SA Farmer spoke to him during the silo’s demolition he said it was “a sad day for the town”.
“They identify the town. We are losing part of our town’s heritage,” he said.
“When I told my daughter who lives in Canada she nearly cried.”
Several other Hamley Bridge residents lamented to SA Farmer the loss of the once-proud giants that had been a feature of the town since 1962.
One resident said it was disappointing but acknowledged that times change and that it was the price of progress.
Another resident, Kitty Togo-Hawkins, said “the silos are a beacon”.
“The kids knew we were nearly home,” she said.
- By Phil Williams
