During the ABC's Lords of Brisbane event, Jim Soorley, who served as Lord Mayor from 1991 to 2003, shared a remarkable story about a near water crisis in Brisbane during the 1990s. The city's council relied on a unique method of testing water safety by administering samples to laboratory mice. Panic ensued when several mice died after testing a sample from the Wivenhoe Dam, leading to fears that Brisbane's drinking water was toxic. Soorley recalled the chaos that followed, with council members preparing for drastic measures like rationing water and cutting supplies to industries. For ten days, the council operated under the threat of a major crisis, as residents continued using water normally while the supply dwindled. Ultimately, a young scientist suggested a control experiment, which revealed that the mice also died after drinking normal distilled water. This discovery indicated that the problem was with the lab's testing methods, not the city's water supply. The relief was palpable among council members as the crisis was averted, a story that remained under wraps until Soorley shared it at the recent event.