A stone’s throw from an idyllic ocean and with island views to match, the Palm Island Servo surely has one of the best vistas of any petrol station in the country.
But for customers on the bustling north Queensland island, the prices are anything but pretty.
At $2.92 a litre for unleaded and $3.16 for diesel, a rapid surge in fuel costs is forcing a stop to boating in the Aboriginal community, where fishing is a way of life.
“We’re seafarers; they call us canoe people,” Palm Island fisherman Gresham Ross said.
“We get that fresh seafood, it’s the stuff we need as part of our culture … the turtle or the fish and your crayfish.”
At the Palm Island Servo – one of two petrol stations on the island – sales are down about 1,000 litres a week.
Fisherman Todd Pearson is determined to continue his evening fishing trips, but he’s reined in how far he trolls for fish.
“[I’m getting] less than 35 litres for $100!”
Service station co-owner Stephen Nicholson said he had no control over world prices, which had increased because of Russia’s war in Ukraine and Australia’s dollar exchange rate.