Victoria Australia's Worst Natural Disaster Ever

[CellyDee87]

Hello all dear friends near and far,

I just wanted to bring your attention to a news event that is certainly dominating national news here and has also become wide spread around the world. Our state of Victoria in Australia is currently enduring its worst natural disaster ever bushfires have ravaged the state, it has left thousands of people homeless and over 130 people have perished. Almost everybody has been affected by these fires in some way shape or form. Poor conditions on Saturday allowed the fire to escallate to a status people could not have imagined 45 degree celcius plus heat and strong winds made fires rip through and destroy communities and livelihoods, our own home was under threat last weekend but the wind changed and thankfully our home was spared, we were some of the lucky ones, sadly others were not so lucky. I'm urging everybody out there to understand the impact of this fire and learn from it if you're ever in this position yourself. Families are in need of everything many had to watch their homes crumble under the flames while their possessions consisted of the clothing they were wearing below are some photos I have taken from my own home and area, however things are much worse around the rest of the state, if anybody can help even in some small way, this can make a huge difference in someone's life... https://www.redcross.org.au/Donations/onlineDonations.asp The Australian Red Cross are accepting donations of any amount to immediately try and help those in need, my thoughts and prayers go out to everybody affected

 

From Times Online

February 9, 2009

Australian PM says arsonists guilty of mass murder as bushfire toll rises to 131

A vehicle is seen near the remains of a house destroyed by bushfires is seen in the town of Kinglake

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/worl...icle5691759.ece

(Mick Tsikas/Reuters)

 

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/multimedia/archive/00483/australia_fires_01_483004h.jpg http://www.timesonline.co.uk/multimedia/archive/00483/Ozzy_fires__01_483371a.jpg

A vehicle near the remains of a house destroyed by bushfires in the town of Kinglake

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Sophie Tedmanson, Sydney

 

The Australian Prime Minister accused arsonists of “mass murder” today as the death toll from savage bushfires sweeping parts of the country reached 131.

 

With thousands of homeless families flooding refugee centres around the state of Victoria, questions are also raised are being raised about the nation’s bushfire safety policies.

 

Horrific stories have emerged of death – and survival – as police continue to sift though the remains of the 750 homes destroyed by the fire looking for bodies. The Government announced a Royal Commission into the scores of blazes which have torn through 330,000 hectares of land.

 

The small town of Marysville in Victoria’s northeast, which was completely razed to the ground by a bushfire, has been declared a crime scene as it is believed the fire was deliberately lit. The Premier of New South Wales has also announced a review of arson punishments.

Times Archive

 

“What do you say about anyone like that? There are no words to describe it other than mass murder,” Kevin Rudd, the Prime Minister, said, fighting back tears.

 

“This is of a level of horror that few of us anticipated.”

 

Up to 5,000 people left homeless by the fires have flooded into 20 Red Cross relief centres set up around the state to provide food and shelter for those left with nothing but the clothes on their backs.

 

At the main centre at Whittlesea, Post-it notes looking for loved ones were pinned to the noticeboards and shocked and bewildered people waited desperately for news.

 

At least 20 people were killed in Kinglake and nine in Kinglake West with dozens more fatalities in nearby communities, while at least 550 homes were razed.

 

Philip Chubb, a university lecturer who lives in the St Andrews area adjacent to Kinglake lost two neighbours in the fire that tore through the area.

 

Embers the size of dinner plates fell through the air as the fire bore down on his house, fuelled by hot winds that “sounded like hurricane”

 

But seconds later the wind changed direction and the blaze skipped their house, only to sweep through a neighbouring area.

 

Earlier today Mr Chubb found out his neighbours Reg Evans and Angela Brunton, who he regularly had dinner with, had perished.

 

While full of praise for the Country Fire Authority (CFA) which manages the bushfire controls, Mr Chubb said the advice given by the authorities were based on out of date policies put in place before Australia’s recent drought.

 

“The advice we’ve all been given is out of date,” Mr Chubb told Times Online.

 

“What that means is a lot of people were killed doing exactly what they were told to do. The people who died in their cars probably did so because, faced with something the size of what they were looking at, deciding they had to get out it was the least bad of two options that were available. Either way they were going to die and they were going to die doing what they were told to do.”

 

His comments came as the Victorian Premier John Brumby announced a Royal Commission into the bushfires and a full review of the state government’s bushfire policy of “stay and defend or leave early”.

 

Mr Brumby said the long-standing approach of advising people to have a bushfire plan ready to either stay to defend their homes or leave well before the fire became a threat had in many cases not saved people at the weekend.

 

“I think when the time comes to examine in-depth all of the issues that occurred on Saturday, obviously fire policy will be one of those areas,'' Mr Brumby told a local radio station.

 

“People will want to review that, examine that, it may be right, it may not be. It's served us well for 20 years or more - that is, if you decide to leave, leave early and if you decide to stay make sure you've got a fire plan.

 

“But there is no question that there were, you will talk to them there at Whittlesea, there is no question that there were people there who did everything right, put in place their fire plan and it wouldn't matter, their house was just incinerated.''

 

Meanwhile more than 300 firefighters are struggling to contain blazes that continue to burn in Victoria, and there are some alight in New South Wales. Beechworth in Victoria’s north remains on high alert as a nearby blaze threatens the town

Death Toll in Australian Fires Climbs to 131

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/10/world/as...stralia.html?hp

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By MERAIAH FOLEY

Published: February 9, 2009

http://english.aljazeera.net/mritems/Images//2009/2/9/20092911629984580_8.jpg

SYDNEY, Australia — Fanned by the hottest temperatures on record, a series of wildfires tore through southern Australia over the weekend, killing at least 131 people in the country’s deadliest natural disaster on record, the police said Monday.

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Associated Press

 

Firefighters battled flames on Sunday in Kinglake, near Melbourne. Two towns and 750 homes were leveled by fires. More Photos »

Multimedia

The Aftermath of Australia’s Worst FiresPhotographs

The Aftermath of Australia’s Worst Fires

Wildfires in AustraliaPhotographs

Wildfires in Australia

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Mick Tsikas/Reuters

 

Destruction in Kinglake, where at least 24 died and more than 500 homes were burned down. More Photos >

The New York Times

 

Marysville, a village of about 600 people, was destroyed. More Photos >

 

Forensic investigators descended on the fire zone Monday to begin identifying bodies found in the rubble. Police warned the death toll could rise.

 

Officials suspect that some of Saturday’s fires were set deliberately. Huge tracts of land were declared crime scenes and police announced a special task force to hunt suspected arsonists, who could face murder charges.

 

A man and a boy were charged with lighting fires on the outskirts of Sydney in two unrelated cases on Monday.

 

Again and again, survivors of the fires that ripped across the southern state of Victoria on Saturday told the same story — the fires came without warning and too fast for anyone to act.

 

Thomas Libreri, a home builder in the alpine village of Kinglake, one of several towns nearly destroyed in the weekend blazes, said the first sign of trouble was when he heard the roar of flames coming over a ridge toward his house.

 

“I heard the noise, and then I had about 20 seconds to react — that’s how fast it came,” Mr. Libreri told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. on Monday.

 

In minutes, the fires had razed most of the homes on his block, leaving one man with severe burns. Mr. Libreri said he and a neighbor grabbed the injured man and threw him into a swimming pool, where they waited six hours for rescue teams to arrive.

 

Some panicked residents tried to flee the inferno in their cars, but crashed into trees, embankments and other vehicles amid the thick smoke. Police said a number of people died trying to outrun the blaze, including six people found burned to death in a single car.

 

Photographs from the fire zone showed the smoldering remains of several burned out cars scattered along the region’s highways, some with the doors flung open as if their terrified passengers had tried to make a last bolt for safety on foot.

 

At least 750 homes were destroyed, displacing more than 1,000 people, many of whom have been left with nothing.

 

Sonja Parkinson and her 2-year-old son were among those who escaped with only the clothes they were wearing. When their home began to disintegrate in the flames, they made a run for a nearby creek, where they huddled under sodden blankets as the fire blazed around them.

 

“They say a bushfire sounds like a freight train coming,” Ms. Parkinson told The Australian newspaper. “But it sounded like a freight train as big as the entire space you could see, the entire horizon. It was that much noise and force.”

 

At least three dozen fires hit Victoria on Saturday, but most of the damage was wrought by a 60-mile-long blaze that razed Kinglake and destroyed several other small villages northeast of Melbourne.

 

Police tape was strewn around the wreckage of several houses in the tiny town of Strathewen, where up to 30 of the town’s 200 people were thought to have died in the blaze, according to a reporter from The Age newspaper who toured the site with a fire official.

 

The Victoria state police commissioner, Christine Nixon, said the process of removing and identifying the dead could take days, as police were treating each death as a potential homicide.

 

“This will take some time,” Ms. Nixon told reporters. “It is a complex matter and we must be accurate.”

 

Australians are no strangers to wildfires. Every summer, thousands of fires burn across this hot, dry continent, and there are not enough firefighters to protect every home. Many rural Australians know that it is only a matter of time before they, or someone they know, will face a stark choice — evacuate or stay to fight the fires.

 

Fire authorities across Australia advise residents who choose to defend their homes to stay indoors while the worst of the blaze passes. Citing statistics from past fires, the agencies say that most people can survive a wildfire if they avoid direct contact with the searing temperatures and scalding gas that come with an advancing fire.

 

However, many of the residents caught up in the Victoria blazes had no time for an orderly escape, and some were killed when the houses they were sheltering in collapsed around them.

 

The state premier, John Brumby, announced that the government would set up a commission to examine the emergency response to Saturday’s fires, and review the longstanding policy of advising residents to “stay and defend or leave early.”

 

“People will want to review that, examine that. It may be right, it may not be,” Mr. Brumby told a local radio station on Monday. “There is no question that there were people who did everything right, put in place their fire plan and it wouldn’t matter, their house was just incinerated.”

 

Wildfires have been burning across Victoria for weeks, but record temperatures of up to 117 degrees combined with the most severe drought in the country’s history to create the worst fire conditions ever seen in Australia, Brumby said.

 

Scientists have been warning for years that climate change will bring higher temperatures and lower rainfall to Australia, increasing the likelihood of deadly wildfires. Some questioned whether Saturday’s fire was a sign of things to come.

 

“It’s a sobering reminder of the need for this nation and the whole world to act and put at a priority our need to tackle climate change,” said Bob Brown, the leader of Australia’s minor Greens Party.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/multimedia/archive/00482/FIRE3_PIXEL_SIZE_38_482921a.JPG http://www.timesonline.co.uk/multimedia/archive/00482/FIRE2_PIXEL_SIZE_38_482899a.JPG

http://smallbusiness.smh.com.au/dotAsset/912532255.jpg http://www.news.com.au/common/imagedata/0,,6477445,00.jpg http://www.latimes.com/media/photo/2009-02/44955137.jpg

 

The picture below shows the view from my window just a few nights ago, and believe it or not, it was a very small fire...

Edited February 9, 2009 at 09:56 AM by Denelle

[Jacqui]

Its so sad. We were watching it on the news tonight and the reporters were almost crying. I'm gonna cry just thinking about it, those poor people who didn't have a chance to get away.

I'm so glad you're ok though Denelle, I've been worrying about you.

Edited February 9, 2009 at 11:33 AM by Jacqui

[CellyDee87]

Thanks so much Jacqui, isn't the nes just heartbreaking at the moment, it's such an awful time seeing people endure this kind of disaster

[CelineRules!]

I've been watching it on the news and looking at the pictures in the papers... I can not begin to imagine what it must be like.. people being burnt in their cars while they were trying to get away from the fires, homes gone...

 

And then those idiots who think it's funny to start a fire

I hope they catch them and I'm glad they will be charged with murder!

 

Glad you're ok Denelle.. I've been hearing the worst news for the past few days...

Edited February 9, 2009 at 11:44 AM by CelineRules!

[CellyDee87]

Thanks Sammy , it's so terrible the news is so depressing right now, the one near our home was deliberately lit also, I can't believe people would do such a thing

[LuisMa]

OMG

 

I just turned on the TV and this is all over the news.

 

I'm also glad that you're fine, Denelle, and hope those ravaging fires are extinguished soon. Those idiots should be punished forever!

[CelineRox]

This is so awful

 

I've seen it on the news here too and I thought of you Denelle......It's so terrible - I hope the stupid mother ******s who started them rot in HELL

 

Stay safe Denelle

[amyja89]

Just seen a distraught couple on the news who had to drive away from their house before they could get their two dogs out of the house. The fire took everything.

 

Absolutely horrifying.

Edited February 9, 2009 at 10:11 PM by amyja89

[CellyDee87]

Death toll rises to 173 this morning

 

Australian bush fires: Fears death toll could reach 230 as Rudd blames 'mass murder'

The death toll from the devastating Australian bush fires could rise as high as 230 as rescue teams move into new fire-damaged areas, authorities have warned.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/images/791135.jpg

 

By Bonnie Malkin in Melbourne

Australian bush fires: Fears death toll could reach 230 as Rudd blames 'mass murder'

The remains of St. Andrew's church is seen after it was destroyed by fire at the community of Kinglake Photo: REUTERS

Australian bush fires: Fears death toll could reach 230

Firefighters on a tanker pass a wall of fire incinerating a clump of trees at the Bunyip Ridge bushfire, near Tonimbuk Photo: EPA

 

The number of dead has shocked the nation, which is struggling to come to terms with the extent of the damage wrought by the worst wild fires in the country's history.

 

The toll from "Black Saturday" currently stands at 173, but the government has warned the country to expect the figure to rise sharply as the search for bodies continues.

 

Suspicions that some of the more than 400 fires were deliberately set led police to declare crime scenes in towns in Victoria incinerated by blazes.

 

Prime minister Kevin Rudd, who has suspended parliament and is touring the affected region, said whoever was responsible for lighting or relighting the fires had committed "mass murder".

 

Firefighters are still battling 31 blazes across the state, including fires at Yarra Glen and Heelsville that are threatening homes, and despite a cool change in the weather the threat from the blazes is far from over.

 

The grim death toll amounts to at least three times the number of lives lost in both the Ash Wednesday fires of 1983 and the Black Friday fires of 1939.

 

It comes as John Brumby, the Victorian premier, announced a Royal Commission into the tragedy.

 

Mr Brumby said all aspects of the fires would be investigated and the state's policy that advises people to either leave early or stay and fight to defend their homes would be reviewed.

 

Australians have responded to the crisis unfolding in the southeastern corner of the country with a tidal wave of donations and support.

 

Charities in the affected areas are overflowing with volunteers, as well as clothing, food and offer of shelter and accommodation. One neon sign stuck to a tree in Whittlesea even offered bushfire victims a "free wash and blow-wave".

 

Forensic teams of investigators are moving into burned out houses and farms, looking for evidence of how the infernos were started, and who could have lit them.

 

Authorities have warned that the toll from the fires that swept through the state "like a steam train" could still rise, as many people remained unaccounted for.

 

Relatives of the missing have been warned it could be days before the bodies are identified because the remains are so badly burned it is "like they have been cremated".

 

A clearly-shaken Mr Rudd struggled to express his horror at the actions of the arsonists.

 

"What can you say? What can you say? There are no word to describe it other than mass murder," he said.

 

"It is a level of horror few of us had anticipated." Keiran Walshe, Victoria's deputy police commissioner, said finding who was to blame for the fires would be difficult, but not impossible.

 

"There's always something that will tell us where the ignition point was and what was used to ignite it. Then we can start to piece together who could have done it." Police have warned that offenders implicated in the fires could be charged with arson causing death, a crime that carries a 25 year prison sentence.

 

But the search for the culprits will bring little comfort to the scores of people left bereaved and homeless by the infernos.

 

On the outskirts of towns gutted by the fires, shellshocked surivors have gathered in relief centres where food, clothing and counselling is being provided by charities and volunteers.

 

Most have lost a family member or neighbour to the fires.

 

Others wait anxiously for news of their loved ones they have been unable to contact since the blazes began.

 

More than 50 deaths came as a result of the massive Kinglake Complex fire. The inferno destroyed the once-picturesque town of Marysville, burning homes, a school and a petrol station to the ground. All that remains of what was once Victoria's favourite honeymoon destination is several piles of ash where homes and businesses once stood.

 

Stories of the extent of the devastation have started to emerge. In Marysville the body of a woman burnt to death lies covered by a blanket on the side of the road. Black dots underneath trees indicate where animals, confused or frightened by the flames, also perished. There are reports that one man, being airlifted to hospital because of horrific burns, was inconsolable at the thought of leaving behind the bodies of his wife and children.

 

On man, desperate to get in touch with his wife and daughters, appealed for information about them on national television.

 

Named only as Sam, he had been prevented from reaching the property where his family had been staying because the roads were still too dangerous.

 

"I was talking to her on the phone but then she had to go because she said it had got bad and they were blocked in by the fire," he told Channel Seven news.

 

"I've been trying to get up the mountain but they won't let me up to see if I can find them, I know where to go." But there were also amazing stories of survival. One family sheltered under a wet blanket in a shallow creek as a firestorm raged around them. Another man, who had been playing Playstation in his bedroom when the fire reached his garden, spotted the flames just in time to escape. One mother and her three children outran three separate fires before reaching safety.

 

Fourteen fires are still burning out of control across the state, with a blaze near Beechworth in the north causing the most concern.

 

As fire crews around the state attempt to contain the remaining blazes, emergency services are working to clear roads of burning trees and cars and restore power to the homes that are still standing.

 

Despite cooler temperatures, authorities have warned that firefighters only have a short window of time to control the fires before the temperatures again begin to rise at the end of the week.

 

Bushfire disaster toll rises

Death toll: 173. Homes lost: 700. | Tuesday, 10 February 2009

http://www.stuff.co.nz/images/791134.jpg

 

LATEST: Towns have been declared crime scenes, and the death toll in Victoria's bushfires could top 200 as the grisly search for bodies continues in communities that were wiped out.

 

At least 173 people are dead and 24 blazes remain out of control as Victoria's bushfire crisis enters its fourth day.

 

The death toll has risen by seven since 2am, with three more bodies found at the wiped-out town of Marysville, taking the toll there to 15, and four more bodies at Strathewen, where the toll there is now 30.

 

It was impossible to tell how many people were missing, authorities said. One insurance company said the fires could cost $500 million.

 

The death toll from the bushfires is certain to rise further as more remains are found in more than 700 burnt-out homes strewn through the 330,000 hectares so far razed in Australia's worst bushfire disaster.

 

Most of the latest people confirmed dead were killed in the small towns of Strathewen and St Andrews, on Melbourne's bushy northeastern fringe.

 

There are now 22 people confirmed dead at St Andrews, a town with a population of about 1500 people. Strathewen, with only 450 people prior to the bushfires, lost 30 residents to the inferno that swept through on Saturday.

 

At 7am, deaths from the fires had been confirmed in Arthurs Creek (3), Callignee (11), Callignee Upper (1), Clonbinane (1), Eaglehawk (1), Flowerdale (4), Hazeldene (2), Hazelwood (4), Heathcote Junction (1), Humevale (6), Jeeralang (1), Kinglake (35), Kinglake West (4), Koornalla (4), Marysville (15), Muudgegonga (2), Narbethong (9), St Andrews (22), Steeles Creek (7), Strathewen (30), Taggerty (3), Unknown (2), Wondong (4), Yarra Glen (1).

 

Whole towns have been declared crime scenes, with fears many of the fires that broke out on Saturday and claimed so many lives were deliberately lit.

 

But police say they are closing in on an arsonist thought responsible for the deadly Churchill-Jeeralang fire in Gippsland and recent fires at nearby Boolarra.

 

Fire authorities fear the worst of the fires could take weeks to contain.

 

Specialist teams used in the aftermath of the Bali bombings have been recruited for the gruesome task of locating and identifying victims of the fires.

 

Meanwhile, Premier John Brumby has announced a royal commission to examine the state's emergency response and possibly review the longstanding "stay and defend or leave early" policy aimed at mitigating the risk of fatalities from bushfires.

 

The largest of the fires, known as the Kinglake Complex, has consumed 220,000 hectares of land and more than 550 homes, killing the majority of the victims - including those at St Andrews, Strathewen and nearby Kinglake.

 

Thirty-five people perished at Kinglake - the greatest single loss of life in these fires - when a ferocious wall of flame swept straight up the heavily timbered Great Dividing Range, taking all in its path.

 

It has cut a terrible swathe across Victoria's central highlands, from Wandong, south as far as St Andrews and east and north through Marysville, Taggerty and Flowerdale towards the upper Goulburn Valley.

 

Department of Sustainability and Environment spokeswoman Nina Cullen said residents in an area on Healesville's southeastern outskirts were under heavy ember attack from a 150 hectare fire at Mt Riddell, about 4km southeast of the town.

 

It was a similar situation at Toolangi, a few kilometres north, where a 50 hectare fire was bombarding the tiny mountain village with embers.

 

"There was a water outage for Healesville residents (late Monday evening) but that has since been rectified and water supply is back on," Ms Cullen said.

 

"There hasn't been any reported losses at this point."

 

Both fires were being fanned by a strong southerly breeze.

 

The Beechworth blaze has burnt 30,000ha and continues to threaten the communities of Dederang, Gundowring, Gundowring Upper, Kergunyah South, Glenn Creek and Running Creek. Residents in those communities have been asked to enact their fire plans.

 

"At the Dederang area particularly during the day, the fire significantly escalated,"

 

"Work has occurred on the north side of that fire, and that activity has gone extremely well.

 

"There remains a few spot fires but the crews on the ground are working really hard and getting somewhere on that fire. The threat has now been downgraded," Ms Cullen said.

 

The deadly Churchill-Jeeralang fire in Gippsland, which has claimed 21 lives, was threatening the township of Won Wron and remains out of control but has been downgraded.

 

Police have confirmed that they believe the same man who lit the devastating Delburn Complex of fires around nearby Boolarra last month, destroying 29 houses and more than 6000 hectares, is the same person responsible for the Churchill blaze.

 

It's expected police will on Tuesday release an image of a man sought for questioning over the fires.

 

"We'll soon be in a position to provide face images of people we believe responsible," Morwell Detective Sergeant Brett Kahan told The Age.

 

In a win for firefighters, the grass fire that has ravaged about 9,500ha near Redesdale, south of Bendigo, was contained by late Monday.

 

The Bureau of Meteorology says that while temperatures will be cooler, southerly winds of around 20 to 25 knots will spring up through the day.

 

Senior forecaster Richard Carlyon said there was no sign of significant rain for the rest of the week with only a few drops falling in the Gippsland area which is battling with the Churchill bushfire.

 

"The southerly winds are likely to freshen this afternoon and this evening through the central part of the state through to the northeast,'' Mr Carlyon said.

 

"The fires up around Healesville, up through Murrindindi and Beechworth will be affected by this freshening of the south to southwesterly winds of 20 to 25 knots.''

 

He said there would be some isolated showers in the south but no more than two to three millimetres.

 

"It's not really going to help,'' Mr Carlyon said.

 

He said it was one of the coolest mornings in Victoria so far this year with early morning temperatures in single figures reaching the mid-20s later in the day.

 

More than 240 firefighters from NSW, 95 from the ACT, 94 from Tasmania and 69 from South Australia have joined Victorian crews, along with disaster identification experts from around the nation.

 

A further 22 firefighters from Western Australia are expected to arrive in Melbourne on Tuesday.

 

- AAP

[Koolan]

I didn't know the extent of these fires until I read the news today. So glad you are safe and sound, Denelle.

[Love,]

This is so absolutely horrible! :(

 

My warmest hope, thoughts and prayers be for the people in Australia affected by this.

[CellyDee87]

The front cover of our major newspaper The Herald Sun featured a picture taken in my home town with one of our local firemen

 

http://www.news.com.au/common/imagedata/0,,6480015,00.jpg

 

http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,2...5018723,00.html

[bec2535au1]

I'm from NSW Australia currently holidaying in Victoria. There are no words that can describe what we are seeing and experiencing, but hell on earth. The total distruction and stories that are being told are horifying, I just heard that the death toll could make 300....i hope not.

 

Thank goodness for the heroic stories that are coming out and the stories of survival. My thoughts are with all the families that have lost love ones.

 

Luv always a proud aussie.

 

Bec

[Bralo20]

The front cover of our major newspaper The Herald Sun featured a picture taken in my home town with one of our local firemen

 

http://www.news.com.au/common/imagedata/0,,6480015,00.jpg

 

http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,2...5018723,00.html

 

I followed the news allready for some days. It's really terrible what happened in Australia. So much tragedy due fires that were probably ignited... It's almost unbelievable... I really hope they find the people who started the fires (even when they weren't meant to be since it's also possible that some were started accidentally), if the fires were started by purpose I hope they will be punished real hard... All those lives... destroyed... The fauna and the flora... destroyed... Constructions.... destroyed... Sad to see this happen, especially since it's on such a big scale...

 

Concerning the picture of the koala:

 

I saw the picture also today on the internet and I find this one amazing picture. It's actually the right picture for the whole event... It tells just everything it needs to tell... I find this picture very sad but heartwarming and hopefull also... It says a lot more then all those pictures of the fires itself, the burned houses, the burned landscape, etc... The way the koala reached to the firemen is stunning, it tells that the koala is really desperate and in need for help. The picture tells also that the firemen have eye for the animals and want to help them also.

 

I really hope that it ends soon, it's terrible to see this all happen...

[CelineRox]

The front cover of our major newspaper The Herald Sun featured a picture taken in my home town with one of our local firemen

 

http://www.news.com.au/common/imagedata/0,,6480015,00.jpg

 

http://www.news.com.au/heraldsun/story/0,2...5018723,00.html

 

It melts your heart

[martele]

It's almost unbelievable... I really hope they find the people who started the fires (even when they weren't meant to be since it's also possible that some were started accidentally), if the fires were started by purpose I hope they will be punished real hard... All those lives... destroyed... The fauna and the flora... destroyed... Constructions.... destroyed... Sad to see this happen, especially since it's on such a big scale...

 

Why do people lit a fire and destroy everything? I can't understand it... The picture with the koala is so sad. Today I read a statement of a man in the newspaper. He said: "I saw dead horses, horses alive, kangaroos jumping around burning at their backs" It makes me sad. Those poor creatures and so many people lost their lives, their homes, everything. I just can't believe it. I'm speechless...

Edited February 11, 2009 at 12:19 AM by martele

[Jacqui]

In such an awful situation, it is nice to see how many people care. I went into the city today and there were soo many people taking donations and stuff. Ahh it's making me cry now.

I gotta say though, the animal thing is really touching...I love that people are more concerned with saving their pets than their property. To me, that's how it should be. It's so sweet seeing pics like the fireman with the koala, and seeing people on the news who lost everything but they're happy because their dog was saved. Everything else can be replaced. People and animals can't.

Mum said some people died trying to save their horses though, and proceeded to lecture me that if we're ever in that situation, I must not run into a burning house to save the pets. I think I would though, I could never leave them.

Stay safe people. oxoxox.

[CelineRules!]

Update on the koala who has been named 'Sam'

 

http://tizona.wordpress.com/2009/02/11/upd...hfire-survivor/

 

It's nice to hear some heartwarming stories in the middle of all the misery.

I hope they get the other fires under control so they can start the rebuilding. They've got an immense task ahead of them..

Edited February 11, 2009 at 11:31 AM by CelineRules!

[CellyDee87]

This is the clip of Sam the koala, I can't believe this was filmed in our town!

 

 

And Jacqui just on what you were saying before I totally agree with you, a house is just bricks and mortar I can tell you when we left we had in our car all the photos 2 dogs the size of horse and the cat, everything else is replaceable, I could never leave the pets behind!

[Jacqui]

Oh gosh that video is so sweet. Poor little koala!

I'm glad you were able to take your dogs when you evacuated, Denelle. Have you been able to go back home yet?

We have a donation box at work now, too.

[CellyDee87]

Yes we're at home now and out of danger, the wind change was good for us, but sadly not for others. The dogs were happy to have a little vacation though.

 

Be sure to watch the benefit on Channel Nine tonight, heaps of celebs including Russell Crowe, Keith and Nicole and even Ellen DeGenerous is doing a live cross, its so good to see people pitching in to help the communities and people who have lost everything

[martele]

I could cry... Poor little koala, but he can be happy that a firefighter gave him the water.

Oh yes, I once had a dream that there was a natural catastrophe happening in our region and I was thinking what I would take with me. I would never leave my cat and the rabbits and leave.

We had floddings two years ago and luckily I wasn't at home when the water came. But my parents told me that the water was that high that it almost flowed into their stables. I firefighter took them out and saved them. Yes, we lost a lot of things which is sad but most of the material things are replaceable but not animals and people.

[RLAAMJR.]

I've heard about that. I hope there are organizations helping those who are affected. i knew this during our training cos i'm training on a travel account and rule 240 is applied.

[Filine]

This is really awful

[RLAAMJR.]

how many death counts by the way?

[CellyDee87]

I think it is still at 181 but they think it could rise to 300

[RLAAMJR.]

I hope Human Nature will help them.