Monday, February 09, 2009

What a way to end the silence - updated just a little

Post script 12th Feb: In the midst of so much loss, one tiny victory. I'm afraid I never have figured out how to embed videos, but I hope this link works.

Believe me, this is amazing. Koalas are not tame, and they can actually be very aggressive. (They're not bears, either, despite the lovely CFA guy's awful pun). As a general rule, they don't drink water either, getting all their hydration from eucalyptus leaves. This is very special indeed:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=do9AoKyjjQg



Photo from The Age newspaper, taken by reader Jac Warburton.

Photo taken from suburban Doncaster by the Mulherin family. Again, from the Age.

This can be a merciless country at times. Last week floods devastated whole towns in Northern Queensland, and the water levels are still too high for many to return to see what they can salvage from their homes. Now, over the last twenty-four hours, terrible fires have raged, exploded and raced at speeds never before seen across vast areas of country Victoria. This morning it has been reported that 108 are confirmed dead, and the number keeps climbing as firefighters and emergency services are able to re-enter areas devoured by the fires.

The fires are still spreading. Over 750 houses are confirmed gone already, and among so many towns ravaged, there are at least two which now no longer exist in any form at all, such was the power of the firestorm. Livestock, domestic animals and native animal populations have also been lost in huge numbers.

While London was under a foot of snow last week, we were experiencing temperatures well into the forties; 46.7 in Melbourne one day, with a humidity level of 4%. On the rare moments I ventured outside, I swear I understood what a baking potato feels like. The heat was indescribable. And to fight a fire in that? Suddenly the concept of Hell is very real.

On Saturday it was in temperatures of up to 47 degrees (that's 116 degrees Farenheit) that most of these fires were born, fed by vicious North winds that created conditions akin to standing in front of a huge blast furnace. Several fires joined up to cover thousands of hectares at once with equal strength. Even cooler conditions in many places yesterday did nothing to slow the spread of firefronts which are still travelling terrifyingly fast.

The reports are horrific. People in their homes who five minutes before had been assured the fire was not an immediate threat to them were engulfed by flames driven by sudden wind changes, with fire fronts moving so fast they covered kilometres in seconds. Many others died in their cars, thinking (or perhaps beyond thinking) that they could outrun the danger and escape. Being on the road in a bushfire is never a good idea. This weekend it was suicide.

Common wisdom says if you are properly prepared, you are safest in your house. This time, the worst weather conditions ever recorded meant that even some of those who did everything right weren't able to survive, though there are many amazing stories emerging of those who did. One family, unable to save their house, ran down into an already burnt gully with bundles of wet sheets and blankets and hid in and around against a wombat hole, sheltered by a dirt mound.

We have friends in some of these areas. Thankfully, all are safe, and although one may have lost a vineyard and weekend house, none have been left homeless. This morning I spoke to Mads' lovely friend Laura, who has been at her family's farm for the weekend. We had been texting messages during what we thought was their worst time of threat, but it was only this morning we found how close they had come to disaster. The fire was a mere 400 metres from them when the wind blew it back on itself. They had no running water to operate hoses, as loss of power meant the pumps couldn't operate. I'm shaking even as I think of what could so easily have happened. The danger is not yet over for them. Winds can still change, and they have been told it is still not safe for them to leave.

The volunteers fighting these fires are as brave and heroic as human beings can ever be. To face walls of flame driven by winds so great that they leap four lane highways as you would jump a puddle, creating the sort of fireballs associated with chemical explosions is just staggering. To cope with the terror, the heat, the exhaustion of twelve hour shifts and the emotional trauma of finding victims ... these people are just magnificent.

However, there is another, darker side of humanity. There is already evidence that while lightning strikes may have started several of the fires, it is arsonists who have created much of this maelstrom. It is here that words just can't express what I feel. I hope they are caught. I hope they are charged with mass murder. I hope they are made to face some of those who have lost family, animals, houses, precious memories. And I hope they live long enough to comprehend the horror of what they have done.

27 Comments:

Blogger Dale said...

Margie, I am speechless, but, living in another wild and unpredictable place, I do understand the power of the energy that surrounds us.
What I do not, and will not, accept is wonton destruction. It tears my heart out when that happens here during our dry season and, no less, when I hear about what has happened where you live.

I do hope the power of Karma, or whatever you will, asserts itself.

xx

11:00 am  
Blogger MargieCM said...

Dale, it's beyond comprehension, isn't it? As I think you have said before, choosing to live in a natural, largely unspoiled environment brings responsibilities and dangers, and the landscape demands respect.

I think that apart from the manner of these fires starting, I am also so very deeply shocked that the advice we've taken as absolute truth didn't always save those who took it this time. Houses designed to withstand ember attack and fire, in well-cleared areas, with sprinklers activated and properly-clothed people to defend them, simply exploded with the force of these fires. This is beyond what we've seen before, even beyond the firestorms of Ash Wednesday in 1983, where asphalt roads burned and cars melted, and over seventy people died in two states.

We should never underestimate the power of nature at its worst, nor the evil in some people and the good in others.

12:40 pm  
Blogger Dale said...

As Koos has so eloquently put it...

sheeple

1:32 pm  
Blogger Anne-Marie said...

Margie,
I hope your friends will stay safe in the middle of such horrific conditions. I echo your words and sentiments about the arsonists and pass along to you and yours my wishes for a speedy (and as benign as possible) end to what is happening in your neck of the woods.

xx
AM

2:05 pm  
Blogger grace said...

I am glad you and those you know are safe. The news has been horrible from your way. thought about you.
I all too well, know the threat of fires, and ligntening strikes. I wish continued safety for you all your way.

nice to see you :)

3:18 pm  
Blogger Koos F said...

Ouch
Ouch
Ouch
Speechless

5:48 pm  
Blogger Vallypee said...

Oh Margie, this is beyond everything, not just comprehension. I cannot imagine anything more terrifying than the sight of that oncoming wall of flames. It is mind numbing to think of the terror and destruction and savage loss of life. My heart goes out to everyone who has had to endure this and to those who've lost their lives, and to those who've had their homes so brutally destroyed. I hear on the radio here that there have now been some arrests. Make those arsonists go and see what they have done. The burnt animal and human carcasses, the razed land. Maybe then, they will have some inkling of the horror they have wrought.

6:53 pm  
Blogger Vallypee said...

Now I've had my rant, can I say how wonderful it si to 'talk' to you again dear, lovely Margie. We have missed you deeply, but I am as much to blame. I've been so busy that even writing emails has been a late night chore that I've often put off, otherwise you would have heard from me that way. I've maintained my blog...just, but no more. As you will have read, though, my time is coming soon! Big hugs from over here xxx

6:56 pm  
Blogger E.L. Wisty said...

I'm relieved that you and your family are not in the danger area, and that such friends of yours that are are unharmed. But all the others who have died... The hellish inferno of the first picture is so horrifying...

I will never understand the arsonists. In the ideal case, if they are not caught, I would go so far as to say that I hope they can't live with themselves for what they have caused and kill themselves. But no, probably they just don't care.

7:01 pm  
Blogger MargieCM said...

No good news I'm afraid. The fires are well into their fourth day, and police are now talking about as many as 300 fatalitiies. It is beyond belief.

Th fires will continue, but with luck and skill, will be contained within unpopulated areas in the next few days.

Thank you so much for all your good wishes. Right now we are all just trying to comprehend, and help where we can. Public appeals are growing, and the generosity of the population is wonderful. Where loss and grief are concerned, it seems we have a common empathy.

8:00 pm  
Blogger Ahvarahn said...

The horror.

Be safe and well, Marge. My heart goes out to those who have lost their lives, family or friends, those who are physically or emotionally scarred, and those who have had their legacies destroyed.

How someone would deliberately do this is very hard to comprehend, but a world service broadcast I heard stated that authorities, having experience with prior incidents, are not ruling out the phenomenon of fires being started by the people entrusted to fight them; rogue fire fighters, seeking the thrill and adrenalin rush of combating wildfires. There is no doubt that people of this ilk are few and far between, that they do a terrible disservice to those who bravely fight to save peoples lives, but when all is said and done, and from wherever this dark side of humanity comes from, for the sake of the victims, I hope the guilty get their just desserts.

8:15 am  
Blogger Unknown said...

Hi Margie. I've thought about you and your family many times over the past few days. It's wonderful to hear that you are safe and that you haven't lost any loved ones or friends.

May the arsonists suffer their own personal, inescapable hells. No words can express the evil they've done.

Nature must be respected.

Please take care. I know you'll do all you can to help where you can - to be part of bringing balance back.

2:21 pm  
Blogger MargieCM said...

Thank you too Paul and Rache - it's really lovely to hear you're thinking of us down here.

As for the little vid I just posted, it has now been reported that the guy who took the footage says he actually filmed it a week ago, during the heatwave that preceded these fires. Doesn't matter. It shows just how extreme the conditions were at the time, and there are so many such little miracles going on amongst all this horror anyway. I think the video's become something of a symbol, and such things are important for human sanity.

7:51 pm  
Blogger Vallypee said...

How are things there now Margie? I have read quite a few articles about these fires now and there seems to be a call for greater management and control over where people build their homes. From what I've read many houses were built too close to trees in a known fire risk area. Do you think this is true, Margie. Should there be greater controls? I've also read that the burning of fire breaks was discontinued as city people complained about the smoke haze. Is that also the case, and do you think it could have helped in this instance? I remember in SA that the fire breaks often prevented smaller fires from gathering strength and force in the path of the high winds.

10:26 am  
Blogger Cathy with a C said...

So glad you are safe!

Cathyxox

12:01 pm  
Blogger MargieCM said...

Cathy, lovely to see you, and many thanks for you good wishes.

Vally, there will continue to be arguments about these issues for years. Certainly there are laws in some areas which forbid what local councils fear is over-clearing which would supposedly ruin the natural feel of the area. At the same time, the CFA (Country Fire Authority) gives firm guidelines about clearing around around houses, types of vegetation which are low risk, etc. The Department of Sustainability and Environment also has a policy of burn-offs for fuel reduction, and maintains firebreaks in many high-risk areas.

I haven't heard about city people onjecting to burnoffs because of the smoke, athough it's possible I suppose. They'd have to be pretty ignorant and selfish though. As always, the balance between lifestyle choice and safety is a tricky one. My feeling is that if an area is too sensitive ecologically to be cleared where necessary, it shouldn't be populated at all.

The reality is, however, that in these fires the huge winds, baked vegetation and low humidity created conditions which pushed them so hard and fast and in so many directions that they travelled over fifty kilometres across some areas in less than half an hour. Rather than single firefronts, they were mass areas of active fire, leaping firebreaks, highways, buildings ... fires "spotted" kilometres ahead of themselves.

Where firebreaks were in place, they had little or no effect. It doesn't mean they shouldn't be maintained - just that they won't always work in extreme conditions. You're right - firebreaks work well in many cases. So do cleared areas around houses. This time though, it was just too big, too powerful.

I suppose it's natural for people to lash out - at 'Greenies", local councils, city people who know no better, politicians. Anger is part of the grieving process. Anger aside though, there are certainly questions that need to be asked and answered. All our fire policies are now up for review.

Meanwhile, the recovery teams are still looking for all those missing, with whole blackened and flattened towns being cordoned off until the search is complete. They've stopped updating the casualty lists officially, and I doubt will release a figure again until the task is complete.

On a more positive note, the generosity of people here is wonderful to see. The Red Cross donation total alone is now over $AUD90 million. Many donations have also come from expat communities and strangers overseas. I think when it's something as primal as loss of family, friends and home, we all tend to think "there but for ..."

10:33 am  
Blogger Madeleine said...

inappropriate post for this blog, but no idea how else to show you this. bushfires suck, this does not.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nnAYOcTpKjg

enjoy

7:12 pm  
Blogger Dale said...

Margie, we have a large Australian contingent working at our ski hill every winter. This year is no different, and many of my collegues from Down Under have family and friends who are directly affected by these fires and the terrible destruction they have left in their paths.
There are donation jars all about the mountain and I have made several modest contributions - we hope every penny will help.
The video was amazing...

Who knows what will happen.
As my verification word suggests, it's only "ourgess"...

11:49 am  
Blogger grace said...

it is a bit of a bizarre world. I spoke with my friend who lives north of Cairnes 2 days ago, and he is in floods. citys were shut off from the flood. And here in your part it is on fire and dry. so bizarre.

4:19 pm  
Blogger Vallypee said...

Thanks for your explanation about the issues concerned, dear Margie. I know that we often only get one sided stories over here so it's good to hear from one so close to the heart of this terrible tragedy. Nonetheless, it also shows how wonderful people can be when help is needed. The news of the donations and active assistance brings everyone together. My heart is still with you all.

7:13 am  
Blogger E.L. Wisty said...

Margie,

Only now got to watching the video of the firefighter giving water to the koala. A really special video.

I hope you and your friends and relatives continue to be ok there. I heard new fires had broken out around Melbourne.

8:41 pm  
Blogger Dale said...

How's the heat Down Under, Margie?
Puts a new angle on living in hell, eh...

Hope all is well.
xx

12:25 pm  
Blogger Vallypee said...

How are things there, Margie?

7:02 am  
Blogger Stevie said...

Oh Margie.
Tears prick my eyes as I type... I have thought of you often, as Rache has, and hope you and your family are holding up well. I cannot even imagine the horror this must be.
And to think that this could have been started by arsonists... the anger it inspires is indescribable.
It is hard enough to deal with the fury of Nature on her own, let alone with the heartless and evil acts of these vile members of our own race. Would that they were caught in their own destruction.
My love comes to you with my every breathe and thought.
xx

4:13 am  
Blogger Stevie said...

please excuse the ire inspired mispelling of breath.

4:15 am  
Blogger Dale said...

I miss you, Margie.
Hope all is well with you and yours.

xoxo

5:10 am  
Blogger grace said...

It has been ages, I hope life is treating you well Margie. Miss U

xox

1:03 pm  

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