Extreem forest fires in Australia - a personal account
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We’ve all heard about the fires going on in australia. You’ve probably seen it on the news, read about it in the paper, perhaps you’ve seen clips of it on the internet or youtube. Well my sister knows someone who lives out there, and she forwarded on this email outlining what happened to some friends of hers who live out there. It really does change how you feel about it all, it makes it real. I’ve taken out the name at the bottom as I don’t feel that it is fair to publicise the writer, but the account is all too real.
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We’re all safe. We were incredibly lucky. So many died. It was an unbelievably ferocious fire. Mum and Dad and my brother Eddy lost everything - every single thing they’d accumulated over their lifetimes. We didn’t manage to save anything for them - they are without identification. They have nothing but … they have everything, because all of us are alive and safe.
Often, city people wonder why country people don’t just leave early. Why stay in the danger zone? Let me tell you. The advice from the CFA was to leave early or implement your fire plan. We implemented our fire plan. We were prepared. We had buildings, contents and caravan insurance. We had been preparing for months beforehand, chopping trees, clearing rubbish, cleaning gutters, accumulating fire equipment. We had water, pumps, generator, portable radio, everything for fighting fire. We’d filled baths and tanks with water and done all the recommended things. We had previous experience. We believed the house was defendable. Nearly all the people I spoke to in Kinglake and Whittlesea had done the same, including the local firefighters. We were all wrong. Nothing could stop that fire. We nearly all lost homes. So many lost their lives. It happended so fast. There was no warning. Nothing on the radio. Not even a warning siren from the Kinglake CFA. The local firetrucks were off the mountain. Nobody knew. The wind changed suddenly and fire roared up the mountain in a matter of minutes. We could only try to save ourselves. Too many didn’t.
Believe me, none of us wanted our 6yr old Jimmy to go through what he did. He is such a brave little boy. We didn’t have time to leave the mountain because Whittlesea below was suddenly under ember attack and the Murrindindi fire was on the other side of the mountain. I didn’t want to drive Jimmy down through smoke because that’s how people often die. So we stayed thinking the house was defendable until we realized the fire was really big. We still didn’t know how big. Andy drove Jimmy and I to the Kinglake CFA which was 5 mins away where we took refuge with many others while he drove back through fire to help mum and dad and Eddy. We had no time to collect anything to save. They were still thinking they could defend the house until they saw flames rising 30feet above the tree line. So they took refuge in the cellar. Thank God they had that strong cellar with water and blankets to huddle under. It saved them from the murderous heat until the house caught fire above them. They then had to leave because the smoke in the cellar was so thick they couldn’t breathe. They had to run out the back through paddocks that had already burned and they lay in a dam trying to breathe. There were cars crashing and trees exploding near them. Meanwhile, Jimmy and I and the others at the Kinglake CFA endured fire roaring on top of us. Luckily there were firefighters there who saved us. Many young volunteers. All scared but brave. The smoke was so thick and the noise was almost overwhelming. Explosions and terrifying wind and the knowledge that we all had loved ones out there. For many long, horrible hours I thought Jimmy and I were the only ones left of our family. Jimmy never cried or complained despite his burning throat and streaming eyes. We huddled together and I tried to shield him and comfort him as best I could. People were magnificent. Stoic. All helping each other. Jimmy kept saying “people are so kind mamma” as we were offered water and wet blankets to huddle under. Everyone was being brave in front of the children. Once the main fire had passed over us we were able to go outside close to the shed and breathe slightly better air whilst seeing Kinglake burn all around us. Distressed people with burns were coming in. No ambulances could get through for so long. Finally, after hours, I was able to get through to my family. They had managed to get to my other brother John’s farm which they were able to save because the main fire hadn’t gone that way. They worked through the night there under ember attack putting out spot fires. They were exhausted but they were all safe and virtually unharmed. It’s unbelievable how lucky they were and how they managed to keep their heads and make some amazingly good decisions.
My parent’s neighbours are all probably dead. They didn’t have as much cleared land around them and they didn’t have a cellar. People up and down that mountain had no chance to get away. The death count is going to rise and rise. I see the authorities are going to review the policy of advising people about how to stay and defend property. I don’t blame anyone. No-one has ever seen a fire like that before. It didn’t follow any of the old rules. The heat during the day. The incredible wind. The years of drought. Climate change. No-one realized that people couldn’t possibly fight it. Even if there were 100 fire trucks on my parent’s property alone it wouldn’t have made a difference. The only way would have been for everyone to evacuate early in the day but to where? And how many? No-one knew where the fires would start. Practically the whole of country victoria would have had to go somewhere. Our nearest treeless town was Whittlesea and that came under attack too. I don’t know what the answer is. I’m just so hugely, completely, deeply grateful that we are all alive.
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