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Australian bushfires

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Sir Sanders Zingmore

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Just checking in and hoping that our Aussie ASR members are ok. I’m in Melbourne, so unaffected by the massive bushfires that are engulfing parts of the country.

The attached photo gives some perspective on the size of area burnt
https://www.theguardian.com/austral...n-the-east-coast-of-australia-interactive-map

864240E6-94CC-4A7F-AEBD-B83E036C4910.jpeg
 

restorer-john

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We are OK in SE Qld hinterland, but we are in a timber pole home up in the forest canopy. It's an extremely high fire risk area. Put it this way, with the dry fuel load that is presently on the forest floor, we'd just grab a few things, the cat, and get out fast.

10 years ago, the house (and the three neighbouring homes) were saved by waterbombing helicopters and 7 metro fire trucks (we are on town water). The fire came up to the back of the house. That was with no wind, little fuel, a cleared block and cool weather- it's the opposite now.

I feel for all our fellow Aussies who have lost everything- we've been blanketed in smoke for weeks here from big fires across the border in northern NSW.
 

Wombat

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OK in North Central Victoria so far. Just some light smoke from 70kilometers away.

I have, in a previous location, experienced having our car packed and family ready to leave as a fire front approached our home. A last-minute change in wind direction saved the day for us. Others were not as fortunate.

The heroes of such bushfires are the volunteer fire fighters(unpaid for up to weeks at a time) who take leave of their employment and risk their lives at the fire-front or supporting those who do. As well, there are those service organisations and individuals who unstintingly give their support those to those who are personally impacted upon by the disaster.


Two volunteer professional fire fighting mates died together in service, each leaving behind a wife and 19month old kids.
This is the real risk that the unpaid professional volunteer fire fighters face every day. Smoke, heat, burns, exhaustion, financial stress and death is their ever present companion.

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Said our Prime Minister trying to excuse his secret 1 week holiday in Hawaii, taken whilst our country experiences its worst ever bushfire season.:mad:
 
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Wombat

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Wombat

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Aussie icons. Selfless(firie) and helpless(koala):


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Doodski

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These extreme fire events are happening world-wide. They haven't come out of nowhere.

Wake-up time, big time. o_O
In Western Canada we have some areas that are third growth forests. The forest management/harvesting has been ongoing for some time. Then there are huge areas where the asian beetles are eating the inside of the bark and killing off the pine trees so they turn brown. Then there are areas where the forest management has worked so well that it prevented the natural burn/seedling cycle of some coniferous trees. Naturally the forests burn from time to time in West Canada. The lack of fire has created massive areas that have dry deadfall and lots of other readily available fuel is laying about and standing. Combine that with lightening, human mistakes and arson and we have had some bad forest fire years recently too. The future outlook for Western Canada is more and bigger fires are coming. I have my S100 Fire Suppression training from when I lived very close to a forest fire and whoever wanted the training got it. I had 16 extra hours for training and I decided why not because the burned pine needles where landing on the sundeck outside the kitchen. It's horrible stuff seeing a 100m candle go up like gasoline.
 

DonH56

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I worked the mop-up side of a fire line in my youth. Incredibly difficult job. We have had several close calls in my area, including one that had us loading up what we could take and getting it a few miles away for safe-keeping. My heart goes out to all the firefighters and to all Australians dealing with this!
 

Tks

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Just saw VICE’s season finale today, and some of the footage of the wildfires in California a few months ago looks like stuff out of a horror movie. I hope everyone stays safe down there in Australia as much as they can.
 

Wombat

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Amazing first-hand experience account:

 

Eirikur

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As I understand the intensity of the fires is a direct consequence of the green Khmer, which has prevented the careful and controlled burning of the Eucalyptus fuel loads(*) during the cold months - any comments from Down Under?
Looks like another example of non-scientific subjectivity taking over and muting the rational voices.
Note that the link is from February 2019, i.e. the current fires might have been contained much better...

(*) Eucalyptus leaves and branches apparently don't rot away, they just accumulate and are highly flammable.
 

gikigill

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As I understand the intensity of the fires is a direct consequence of the green Khmer, which has prevented the careful and controlled burning of the Eucalyptus fuel loads(*) during the cold months - any comments from Down Under?
Looks like another example of non-scientific subjectivity taking over and muting the rational voices.
Note that the link is from February 2019, i.e. the current fires might have been contained much better...

(*) Eucalyptus leaves and branches apparently don't rot away, they just accumulate and are highly flammable.


"The Green Khmer", from a Right wing blog. Good to know their creativity has improved a bit.

Because we all know environmentalists have systematically rounded up and killed millions of innocent people unlike our current coal loving PM.

Lets not forget the 75% budget cutting taken by our Conservative lawmakers in the state of NSW and others. Atleast they cant be accused of being fiscally reckless while their state burns around them. They saved $50 million to lose a lot more but hey lets blame the Green Khmer for it.

Regarding the careful and controlled burning, here's Victoria's backburns.

https://www.ffm.vic.gov.au/bushfire-fuel-and-risk-management/joint-fuel-management-program

The author seems bitter that his time is past comparing himself to WW1 generals.
 

Eirikur

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"The Green Khmer", from a Right wing blog. Good to know their creativity has improved a bit.
The Khmer Rouge were known for not letting any rational argument stand in the way of their "ideals". Still, I apologize for politicizing that part of the discussion, it is not my intention to argue the vices and virtues of activists on this blog.

Lets not forget the 75% budget cutting taken by our Conservative lawmakers in the state of NSW and others. At least they cant be accused of being fiscally reckless while their state burns around them. They saved $50 million to lose a lot more but hey lets blame the Green Khmer for it.
Yes, you are quite right here, I also observe there is very little middle ground left in politics - only swings to either extreme. The result is the worst of both worlds, in your Australian case leading to actual devastation.
 
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