The road to the East coast goes along the flat country in Queensland and crosses hundreds of dry and wet creek beds. Water flows south during the tropical-north wet season probably.That occurs late in the second half of the year off hand. So road and rail construction had its challenges.
For the Sabbath, today, the very ancient book of Exodus has Moses striking a rock so that water would flow out and that was a big relief because he was beginning to think the people would stone him if there was no water.  I read, once again, how living water is a metaphor for the devine...and for if there's an emptyness... was that know long long ago...it's a very old story....Queensland is a land far more ancient than Exodus....