Pt Hedland

Port Hedland: the low down

Located on the coast in WA’s Pilbara Region, Port Hedland is a busy industrial hub with all the facilities you’d expect in a town of 15,000 people.

BHP Billiton is the major employer, exporting 70 million tonnes of iron ore annually via its iron ore processing and shipping facilities. The company’s massive Mt Whaleback mine, 400km to the south of town, is the biggest single-pit, open-cut ore mine in the world.

Likewise, Dampier Salt produces more than three million tonnes of industrial salt annually for export from solar salt ponds. Smaller companies export manganese, copper and tantalum.

The town’s facilities and services include:

• Five pre-primary schools, six public and private primary schools, Hedland Senior High School and two campuses of Pilbara TAFE.
• Port Hedland Hospital, offering a stack of services (see link below).
• The JD Hardie Recreation Centre: indoor and outdoor fitness activities and sports for all ages, a school holiday program for kids and special events during term time.

And when you’ve got the day off, you can really get busy. There’s everything from fishing, tennis and golf to whale and turtle spotting in winter.

Last but not least, we’re told the place can get rather warm, with winter minimum temps sitting at around 25C and rising to a toasty high-40s in summer. Air-con anyone?

Useful links:

• Town of Port Hedland
• Port Hedland Chamber of Commerce
• Port Hedland Hospital