Bushfires in Australia

[tonydawe]

My thoughts and prayers go out to all Planeteers in Victoria who are dealing with the worst bushfires in our country's history.

To date over one hundred people have been killed, more than 700 houses have been destroyed and thousands are now homeless. Entire communities have been wiped off the face of the earth.

The smoke from these massive fires has been seen as far away as New Zealand. Sadly this tragedy is expected to get worse in the days to come.

 

[John Bowery]

Our prayers go out to all of you.
John and Maureen

 

[Jamie Stokes]

Fire fighters from Tasmania are flying out (if they haven't done so already) and it would come as no surprise that New South Wales has sent some volunteers also.

One thing that really upsets me is that some of the fires were deliberately lit.

My hopes and wishes go out to the fire fighters on the front line, and those hurt by the fires.

 

[tonydawe]

The death toll from these massive fires continues to increase by the hour, and the fires are still out of control and spreading. They are now the worst natural disaster in our nation's history.

Both Jamie and I have family in the area, who thankfully are safe.

While the south east of Australia is burning, North Queensland has been covered in record flood waters for almost a week.

Thank you for your prayers John and Maureen.

 

[Chrisr]

Thank you for posting this thread Tony.

We are all rather shaken by this national tragedy. Our thoughts are with our Victorian citizens who are experiencing a living hell which our North American cousins would understand.

Just terrible - our prayers are with them.

Chrisr

 

[Nap]

Bushfire

Tony ,
Thanks for posting this , its a tradgedy beyond belief , we can only imagine what its like from the news reports on the TV in UK .
Our thoughts and prayers are with all those that are involved in controlling this and also with those who have lost family , may it all come to an end fast.

Nap

 

[Christosjager]

Our thoughts and prayers to Australian brothers here from Greece because we know well about fire disasters.We have a major Greek community in Australia and we hope this massive destruction soon will take an end without any other loses,keep on mates.

 

[tonydawe]

Thanks to all who've responded to this thread with their kind thoughts and prayers.

Since I posted this thread the death toll has increased more than 30%, and there are still entire communities that the Police haven't been able get to to start identifying bodies. There are still several large fires out of control that have broken containment lines. Many small towns are under threat from fire and ember attack, both in Victoria and in New South Wales.

Last Saturday it was 46.1 degrees celcius (approx 120 degrees F) in Melbourne and the wind was over 100 k/h. Hell on earth.

Can our Victorian Planeteers check in and let us know you're OK.

 

[carl reid]

I'm no a religious man Tony, and it seems kind of hypocritical. But I my thoughts and prayers go very much to the poor poeple who have lost relatives homes and memories to this disaster. I hope they find the poeple responsible and try them for mass murder.

Carl

 

[Mark S]

Tony,
Unbelievable scenes unfold as we see the awful consequences of a fire storm and a devastating flood.So many dead,so many shattered lives.
Entire towns no longer exist.
Australia "The beauty and the terror"-"a land of drought and flooding rains".
Thanks to all the heros on the frontline and all those supporting them!

 

[BarrieHynd]

Tony, it upsets me to see what is happening there. I can only imagine the scale of the devastation from watching the news reports broadcast in the UK. My thoughts and prayers go to all the citizens involved and especially to the firefighters many of whom i believe have /are coming in from all ares to help.
Barrie.

 

[tonydawe]

Hi Carl and Barrie,

Thanks to both of you for your kind comments of support and solidarity.

The firefighters battling these blazes are mainly volunteers from the RuralFire Service and the Country Fire Authority. Tragically while thousands of these brave and selfless Aussies have been working around the clock to save other people's lives and property, some of them have lost their own families and homes in these awful fires.

The Army has been mobilised, firefighters are flying in from New Zealand, Tasmania, South Australia and Western Australia, and the entire nation has rallied in support of the victims.

When I woke up this morning the death toll from the Victorian fires was 108. Tonight, the authorities are saying the toll could reach 200 by the end of the week, and that doesn't include any new victims from the 40 or so fires that are still raging uncontrolled through Victoria and New South Wales, or any new fires that might start.

Australia is a country used to hardship and we've had our fair share of natural disasters, but these fires are unprecedented in our history and on a scale unimaginable.

An area the size of Belgium has been scorched to ash and cinders in less than two days.

 

[megroot]

Tony i watched the news and they spoke over 178 dead people including children.
There was a lady with her sister. Both there husbands where not yet arrived.
Also a dutch lady who lives there for 8 years has lost everything.
I hope that everything is well with your friends, familly etc. When i look at the TV it is surely some inferno that is not stopped very soon.
Heavy rain, no wind will help. But that's all where we can praying for.
Good luck, i keep my fingers crossed...

Marc

 

[Jamie Stokes]

Thanks to all who have looked in, and offer your support in whatever suits you best.

While I feel sorry for those who have lost loved ones, I also feel for the farm animals who suffer, and the Australian native animals who get caught up in the fire.

Just because it has fur, feathers, scales, wool, doesn't mean the pain is felt any less.

Thanks again for all your support, fellow Planeteers.

Warmest.

 

[tonydawe]

Thank you Marc, your comments and your kind thoughts are greatly appreciated.

Thankfully all my family and friends in Victoria are now safe. I only hope our fellow Planeteers living in Victoria are as lucky. This tragedy has deeply affected everyone in our nation, and it would ease my mind if some of our Victorian Planeteers would check in and let us know they are OK.

Latest reports indicate the death toll is now over 170 (and expected to continue climbing in the days and weeks to come), over 750 houses have been destroyed, at least four towns have been completely obliterated and many more severely damaged and still under threat of attack, over 4,500 people are now homeless, scores are in hospital receiving treatment for horrendous burns, and as Jamie pointed out, thousands of native animals, family pets and livestock have been incinerated.

The fires are still burning all over Victoria, and sadly it seems many of them appear to have been deliberately lit. Mass murdering bastards!! Prison is too good for them.

The weather in Victoria has moderated a little bit in the last 2 days but unfortunately they are expecting further strong winds and extremely high temperatures later this week which could cause the fires to flare up again. It aint over yet!

I've attached a couple of images to give you the big picture and a more personal view of the tragedy that occurred. The satellite image shows the smoke haze from the bushfires that now hangs over all of south eastern Australia and streches across the Tasman Sea to New Zealand.

The second image speaks for itself.

 

[Jeff]

I feel for anyone who is going through this. The big fires here in California did not affect me directly, but my city was shrouded in smoke and ash for days on end and that was bad enough. I did not have to keep my eyes on the local hills and be ready to run at the next wind change. My thoughts and prayers are with you all Downunder.

Best
Jeff

 

[dinovision79]

Hi Tony and all Australian forum members,

this is a really terrible and insane natural (and human-caused) catastrophy! We can only hope it will end soon and with the least possible casualties and damage, the number of casualties clearly show the rage and intensity of the fire.
The effort by the firefighters and other people is admirable, they are real heros of these days! I really feel for Australia and wish you strenght, persistence and good luck with fighting this monster!

Denes

 

[tonydawe]

Thanks Jeff and Denes for your thoughts and your compassion,

I should point out that here in Perth, I am safely thousands of miles away from the fires in Victoria. (The same distance between London and Moscow)

The reason these fires have united all Australian's in horror and grief is not just the unprecedented loss of life and property, but the knowledge that the same extreme conditions that caused these terrible fires in Victoria exist in New South Wales, Tasmania, South Australia and here in The West.

All Aussies know we're just a lit cigarette butt away from suffering the same terrible fate and the hottest part of Summer has has yet to come.

Only in the North is the threat of bushfire not acute, because they're under 12 metres of flood water from tropical cyclones.

 

[dannyk01]

Seeing that second picture made me shiver... Just thinking of the firefighter who had lost (by the looks of it) everything. That is very scary though. By the looks of it, the fire isn't threatening any property at the moment and the death rate has increased to 181.

Daniel..

 

[vergilius]

I heard it on the news yesterday! Some say this weather might be Australia's future. Let's hope not! I hope they find the idiots who started this. Australia's Prime minister was right when he said this is mass murder!