Victorian Bushfires (Australia's worst natural disaster)

mattie! · February 7th, 2009, 01:22 PM

Very sad day, I had no idea it would get this serious.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2...section=justin
Fourteen people are dead and dozens of homes have been destroyed as fires burn over tens of thousands of hectares in Victoria and New South Wales.

Six have been killed at Kinglake, four at Wandong, three at Strathewen and one at Clonbinane. Police fear up to 40 people may have died.

Victoria is bearing the brunt of the inferno with ten major fire fronts, and a man has been arrested in New South Wales suspected of arson.

Kinglake and Healesville, north of Melbourne, are the areas of most concern for authorities, and they say there are between 100 and 150 people sheltering in the Country Fire Authority (CFA) station in Kinglake.

A man is in a critical condition after being burnt over half of his body when he attempted to move a friend's stock away from the fire in the Coleraine area, in Victoria's east, while he was wearing only shorts and thongs.

Another man was taken to Melbourne's Alfred Hospital with burns to the face, and there are unconfirmed reports of another man who was burnt.

Ambulance authorities say there is a power problem at a hospital in Beechworth in the state's north, which may need to be evacuated.

There are emergency medical centres in Coldstream and Whittlesea showgrounds.

It is unclear how many animals have been killed by the fires, but ABC Local Radio in Victoria has fielded a number of calls from people who say their stock and pets have been lost.

CFA chief officer Russell Rees says Victorians need to prepared for the fire threat to increase through the night.

"We have to make a plea to people to realise that just because the southerly wind change has come and the temperature drops, the risk is not gone," he said.

"We've got three or four hours of very significant push in this wind change at least, and we all know from past history that fire at night is even more scary than than fire in the day."

Victorian Premier John Brumby says he has been putting his own bushfire preparations into place at his farm, and he has thanked fire fighters for their efforts.

"Today Victoria has experienced the worst fire conditions in history, even worse than Ash Wednesday of 1983," Mr Brumby said in a statement.

Stretched to breaking point

Fire authorities say new blazes are putting "enormous pressure" on their resources, with all available trucks and more than 3,000 fire fighters already committed to fighting bushfires that have been burning through the day.

Temperatures have dropped across Victoria, but there will be little relief with high winds expected to change direction and force fires onto new fronts.

A fire burning from Kilmore to Yarra Glen, north of Melbourne has turned into a massive blaze of around 10,000 hectares that officials say is almost impossible to control. More than 30 homes have been destroyed in Kilmore, Bendigo and Kinglake.

It is believed a primary school in Wandong has also been destroyed.

There are 101 fire fighters battling the fire, which has destroyed dozens of homes and buildings and is threatening others at Wandong, Heathcote and Upper Plenty north of Melbourne.

The fire, which has burnt through 4,000 hectares, started east of Kilmore and is moving in a southerly direction between Kilmore East and Whittlesea.

A relief centre has been established at the multi-purpose centre in Bentinck Street in Wallan.

ABC Local Radio received a phone call from Peter Mitchell in Kinglake north of Melbourne, who said the entire town was engulfed in flames.

His situation showed how stretched the CFA's resources were, with no fire trucks present after they had been called to the dozens of fires elsewhere in the state. Mr Mitchell said there was one water tanker in the town.

Gippsland fires

The fires have also destroyed several properties across Gippsland in eastern Victoria.

Thick smoke and ash is blowing across west and central Gippsland and the Latrobe Valley, from fires burning near Drouin, Walhalla, and the Strzelecki Ranges.

The fire on the eastern fringe of the Strzelecki Ranges is currently heading towards Willung South, Carrajung South and Carrajung Lower, and the CFA is warning residents may be directly impacted by the fire.

Earlier, the fire passed through Callignee. Other areas including Traralgon South, Gormandale and Yarram are on alert for falling embers.

That blaze is still threatening a number of townships, including Nilma North, Darnum, Neerim South and Noojee, and spot fires have broken out in Warragul.

And a fire burning north of Traralgon is burning in a south-easterly direction, and residents in Toongabbie, Glengarry and Cowwar are also on alert. Earlier it ripped through 600 hectares of pine forests in one hour.

Ricky, from Calignee, south of Traralgon, says her neighbours' houses were destroyed.

She says her husband has been burnt in the blaze, which destroyed the family's cars and a shed, but spared the house.

"The roar from over the hill, I just got too scared, and we went back down towards the house, and ended up getting in the house and the windows cracked," she said.

The Princes Highway has been closed either side of Warragul, in West Gippsland and the South Gippsland Highway is now closed, south of Longford.

There are concerns the fire might damage the coal-fired power station at Loy Yang, but at this stage the fire is threatening neither the station nor the nearby coal mines.

The fire has damaged the ABC's FM transmitter in the region, but ABC Gippsland is still broadcasting emergency information on 828 AM.

It has also been confirmed houses have been lost in a fire around the Bunyip State Park, east of Melbourne, but it is unclear how many.

The fire broke containment lines overnight and if the wind changes this evening the fire front may grow in size to 20 kilometres, authorities warned.

Enormous scale

Fires are becoming so big that they are creating their own weather.

Senior weather forecaster, Terry Ryan, says thunderstorms are forming over fire-affected parts of west Gippsland.

"We call it pyrocumulus, where all the ash coming out of the fire causes lifting and convection, and can cause a thunderstorm-looking top," he said.

"You can get thunderstorms and lightning coming out of the top of the fire basically, and that can add to the fire's effect, a bit of a nasty feedback effect that can occasionally happen."

Easing temperatures and winds have reduced the threat posed by a fire at Horsham, in western Victoria, that destroyed five homes, a fire truck and the Horsham Golf Club.

The blaze has burned about 3,000 hectares around the city's outskirts.

The golf club's manager, Jason Maybery, says the damage to the course is extensive.

"Total devastation. The clubhouse and the pro-shop have been gutted," he said.

"The sheds in the middle of the course, it's all been burnt as well and a lot of the trees around our lovely course have also been totally burnt down."

Residents of the Yarra Valley have been told to immediately activate their bush fire plans.

In the north-east, a fire is burning south of Beechworth and is moving in a south-easterly direction.

A blaze is burning in west Bendigo where several homes are believed to have been lost and the Redesdale fire to the south-east of Bendigo has burnt about 6,000 hectares.

New South Wales

Firefighters in New South Wales are working to establish containment lines around a fire that is threatening homes at Peats Ridge on the state's central coast.

The Rural Fire Service has applauded residents in the area, saying they have worked hard to protect their homes from the threat of embers.

It is one of about 40 fires burning across the state tonight.

Police arrested a 31-year-old man on the Pacific Highway this afternoon, accused of lighting a fire on the central coast.

***crawf*** · February 7th, 2009, 01:25 PM

Fuck!!!

Worse than Ash Wednesday, terrible..... So glad this heatwave is finally over

mattie! · February 7th, 2009, 01:45 PM

Planks & Sticks · February 7th, 2009, 01:52 PM

I was following this on another forum which have a few CFA members on it, they said it was a horrible day for anything. I hope the worst of it has passed.

gappa · February 7th, 2009, 02:02 PM

Sad day. My thoughts are with those who have been affected in any way and to all those who are working tirelessly in fighting the fires.

MILIUX · February 7th, 2009, 02:06 PM

Is Melbourne covered by a thick bushfire smoke? Today Sydney's Lane Cove national park was on fire.

Hopefully they sort this fire asap.

Wilko · February 7th, 2009, 02:18 PM

^ Not Melboure, but a little east to Gippsland and the Latrobe Valley, especially Traralgon, the sky was blackend with a red glow with scenes of hell.

It has been the worst day ever.

***Oriolus*** · February 7th, 2009, 02:21 PM

Cylones and flooding in the north, heatwaves and bushfires in the south - seems like this whole country is going to hell in a handbasket at the moment. I had no idea so many people had been killed in the bushfires though. Terrible terrible stuff

Burden · February 7th, 2009, 02:31 PM

And snow in America and UK if memory serves.

MelbourneCity · February 7th, 2009, 02:37 PM

THIRTY THOUSAND are fighting the fires in VIC tonight. Good luck to them and my thoughts are with those who have lost family, friends and property today.

Burden · February 7th, 2009, 02:48 PM

Fortunately its almost over for South Autralia and Vic before the southernly breezes kick in according to the Weather Channel???? Spare a thought also for our mates across the ditch, the record heat is about to engulf the whole of New Zealand next week, 32°C in Dunedin!!!! Shezzz thats saying something!

Maroon Grown · February 7th, 2009, 02:54 PM

whoa. this got bad real quick. not even the 6.00 news had stories as bad as this. not good at all. hopefully the cooler and more humid conditions tomorrow will slow the fires down.

are most of the fires results of arsonists? they live for days like this. 46C, windy and dry as a bone. it seems coincidental that all summer nothing has happened and the one day that authorities warn that it will be EXTREME fire conditions, all the fires all of a sudden pop up out of nowhere.

city_thing · February 7th, 2009, 03:05 PM

14 deaths is an incredible amount... but 40! Fuck!

Miliux - I went out my house at about 3pm this afternoon and the sky was white. I couldn't really tell if it was just normal clouds, or smoke/haze but it was an off-colour white and incredibly thick.

Phoenix_1 · February 7th, 2009, 03:21 PM

My thoughts and prayers are with those who have lost people today, and with the firefighters and volunteers who are out there fighting the fires. I really hope the police catch the scum who started some of the fires and charge them with murder.

aussiescraperman · February 7th, 2009, 04:48 PM

my dad's out there fighting tonight! ALL the best to the other 29,999

Drunkill · February 7th, 2009, 06:38 PM

Some reletives have had a close call at thier place in Hazelwood North. Their family has retreated to morwell for the night, a friend of theirs almost lost a house but the VFA got it undercontrol and only the back wall and downpipes were burnt.

Me and my brother have packed the car with water blankets and food, if we get a call during the night or in the morning we'll be going to help our relatives.

Saigoneseguy · February 7th, 2009, 07:37 PM

We could be heading to a rough time in the Northern Hemisphere this coming summer...

mattie! · February 7th, 2009, 11:10 PM

25 people confirmed dead now

NSW is heading into bushfire type weather today as well with 40C temperatures around the country side.

uewepuep · February 7th, 2009, 11:50 PM

Fuck that's a lot of people.

CP Doom · February 7th, 2009, 11:53 PM

Its like a volcano has gone off here, ash everywhere & the smell of acrid smoke, you cant get away from it. Was at work last night, we gave up half way through cos ash kept drifting in under doors & through the skylights. My car went from blue to black & the rain we had was useless.
If this doesnt make the government reconsider and make arson a life scentence in prison, it only confirms they are uncaring arseholes.

February 7th, 2009, 01:22 PM	#1
mattie! Registered User Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Melbourne Posts: 273 Likes (Received): 22	Victorian Bushfires (Australia's worst natural disaster) Very sad day, I had no idea it would get this serious. http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2...section=justin Fourteen people are dead and dozens of homes have been destroyed as fires burn over tens of thousands of hectares in Victoria and New South Wales. Six have been killed at Kinglake, four at Wandong, three at Strathewen and one at Clonbinane. Police fear up to 40 people may have died. Victoria is bearing the brunt of the inferno with ten major fire fronts, and a man has been arrested in New South Wales suspected of arson. Kinglake and Healesville, north of Melbourne, are the areas of most concern for authorities, and they say there are between 100 and 150 people sheltering in the Country Fire Authority (CFA) station in Kinglake. A man is in a critical condition after being burnt over half of his body when he attempted to move a friend's stock away from the fire in the Coleraine area, in Victoria's east, while he was wearing only shorts and thongs. Another man was taken to Melbourne's Alfred Hospital with burns to the face, and there are unconfirmed reports of another man who was burnt. Ambulance authorities say there is a power problem at a hospital in Beechworth in the state's north, which may need to be evacuated. There are emergency medical centres in Coldstream and Whittlesea showgrounds. It is unclear how many animals have been killed by the fires, but ABC Local Radio in Victoria has fielded a number of calls from people who say their stock and pets have been lost. CFA chief officer Russell Rees says Victorians need to prepared for the fire threat to increase through the night. "We have to make a plea to people to realise that just because the southerly wind change has come and the temperature drops, the risk is not gone," he said. "We've got three or four hours of very significant push in this wind change at least, and we all know from past history that fire at night is even more scary than than fire in the day." Victorian Premier John Brumby says he has been putting his own bushfire preparations into place at his farm, and he has thanked fire fighters for their efforts. "Today Victoria has experienced the worst fire conditions in history, even worse than Ash Wednesday of 1983," Mr Brumby said in a statement. Stretched to breaking point Fire authorities say new blazes are putting "enormous pressure" on their resources, with all available trucks and more than 3,000 fire fighters already committed to fighting bushfires that have been burning through the day. Temperatures have dropped across Victoria, but there will be little relief with high winds expected to change direction and force fires onto new fronts. A fire burning from Kilmore to Yarra Glen, north of Melbourne has turned into a massive blaze of around 10,000 hectares that officials say is almost impossible to control. More than 30 homes have been destroyed in Kilmore, Bendigo and Kinglake. It is believed a primary school in Wandong has also been destroyed. There are 101 fire fighters battling the fire, which has destroyed dozens of homes and buildings and is threatening others at Wandong, Heathcote and Upper Plenty north of Melbourne. The fire, which has burnt through 4,000 hectares, started east of Kilmore and is moving in a southerly direction between Kilmore East and Whittlesea. A relief centre has been established at the multi-purpose centre in Bentinck Street in Wallan. ABC Local Radio received a phone call from Peter Mitchell in Kinglake north of Melbourne, who said the entire town was engulfed in flames. His situation showed how stretched the CFA's resources were, with no fire trucks present after they had been called to the dozens of fires elsewhere in the state. Mr Mitchell said there was one water tanker in the town. Gippsland fires The fires have also destroyed several properties across Gippsland in eastern Victoria. Thick smoke and ash is blowing across west and central Gippsland and the Latrobe Valley, from fires burning near Drouin, Walhalla, and the Strzelecki Ranges. The fire on the eastern fringe of the Strzelecki Ranges is currently heading towards Willung South, Carrajung South and Carrajung Lower, and the CFA is warning residents may be directly impacted by the fire. Earlier, the fire passed through Callignee. Other areas including Traralgon South, Gormandale and Yarram are on alert for falling embers. That blaze is still threatening a number of townships, including Nilma North, Darnum, Neerim South and Noojee, and spot fires have broken out in Warragul. And a fire burning north of Traralgon is burning in a south-easterly direction, and residents in Toongabbie, Glengarry and Cowwar are also on alert. Earlier it ripped through 600 hectares of pine forests in one hour. Ricky, from Calignee, south of Traralgon, says her neighbours' houses were destroyed. She says her husband has been burnt in the blaze, which destroyed the family's cars and a shed, but spared the house. "The roar from over the hill, I just got too scared, and we went back down towards the house, and ended up getting in the house and the windows cracked," she said. The Princes Highway has been closed either side of Warragul, in West Gippsland and the South Gippsland Highway is now closed, south of Longford. There are concerns the fire might damage the coal-fired power station at Loy Yang, but at this stage the fire is threatening neither the station nor the nearby coal mines. The fire has damaged the ABC's FM transmitter in the region, but ABC Gippsland is still broadcasting emergency information on 828 AM. It has also been confirmed houses have been lost in a fire around the Bunyip State Park, east of Melbourne, but it is unclear how many. The fire broke containment lines overnight and if the wind changes this evening the fire front may grow in size to 20 kilometres, authorities warned. Enormous scale Fires are becoming so big that they are creating their own weather. Senior weather forecaster, Terry Ryan, says thunderstorms are forming over fire-affected parts of west Gippsland. "We call it pyrocumulus, where all the ash coming out of the fire causes lifting and convection, and can cause a thunderstorm-looking top," he said. "You can get thunderstorms and lightning coming out of the top of the fire basically, and that can add to the fire's effect, a bit of a nasty feedback effect that can occasionally happen." Easing temperatures and winds have reduced the threat posed by a fire at Horsham, in western Victoria, that destroyed five homes, a fire truck and the Horsham Golf Club. The blaze has burned about 3,000 hectares around the city's outskirts. The golf club's manager, Jason Maybery, says the damage to the course is extensive. "Total devastation. The clubhouse and the pro-shop have been gutted," he said. "The sheds in the middle of the course, it's all been burnt as well and a lot of the trees around our lovely course have also been totally burnt down." Residents of the Yarra Valley have been told to immediately activate their bush fire plans. In the north-east, a fire is burning south of Beechworth and is moving in a south-easterly direction. A blaze is burning in west Bendigo where several homes are believed to have been lost and the Redesdale fire to the south-east of Bendigo has burnt about 6,000 hectares. New South Wales Firefighters in New South Wales are working to establish containment lines around a fire that is threatening homes at Peats Ridge on the state's central coast. The Rural Fire Service has applauded residents in the area, saying they have worked hard to protect their homes from the threat of embers. It is one of about 40 fires burning across the state tonight. Police arrested a 31-year-old man on the Pacific Highway this afternoon, accused of lighting a fire on the central coast. Last edited by mattie!; February 8th, 2009 at 12:05 AM.

February 7th, 2009, 01:25 PM	#2
*crawf* © Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Adelaide Posts: 5,127 Likes (Received): 19	Fuck!!! Worse than Ash Wednesday, terrible..... So glad this heatwave is finally over __________________ The Australia Guide

February 7th, 2009, 02:02 PM	#5
gappa Registered Abuser Join Date: Mar 2007 Location: Foster Posts: 2,781 Likes (Received): 1	Sad day. My thoughts are with those who have been affected in any way and to all those who are working tirelessly in fighting the fires. __________________ Seventy smiling Sinbads praise America and wish for some shoes

February 7th, 2009, 02:18 PM	#7
Wilko Aussie Aussie Aussie Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Melbourne Posts: 888 Likes (Received): 2	^ Not Melboure, but a little east to Gippsland and the Latrobe Valley, especially Traralgon, the sky was blackend with a red glow with scenes of hell. It has been the worst day ever. __________________ MELBOURNE Essendon Football Club BOMBERS FOREVER

February 7th, 2009, 02:21 PM	#8
*Oriolus* OzScrapers Moderator Join Date: Feb 2004 Location: Townsville Posts: 4,954 Likes (Received): 25	Cylones and flooding in the north, heatwaves and bushfires in the south - seems like this whole country is going to hell in a handbasket at the moment. I had no idea so many people had been killed in the bushfires though. Terrible terrible stuff __________________ Townsville Biggest city in the northern half of the great southern land. Visit me on flickr

February 7th, 2009, 01:45 PM	#3
mattie! Registered User Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Melbourne Posts: 273 Likes (Received): 22

February 7th, 2009, 01:52 PM	#4
Planks & Sticks Rabid Furry Skier Join Date: Sep 2007 Location: Mulbuhn Posts: 1,324 Likes (Received): 32	I was following this on another forum which have a few CFA members on it, they said it was a horrible day for anything. I hope the worst of it has passed.

February 7th, 2009, 02:06 PM	#6
MILIUX skyscraper connoisseur Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Sydney Posts: 5,521 Likes (Received): 25	Is Melbourne covered by a thick bushfire smoke? Today Sydney's Lane Cove national park was on fire. Hopefully they sort this fire asap.

February 7th, 2009, 02:31 PM	#9
Burden What to do with my life.. Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 4,446	And snow in America and UK if memory serves. __________________ Townsville is unlike any other city in Australia. No city of comparable size has quite the connection into the future prosperity of the Australian nation as does Townsville. Townsville's next phase of growth is likely to accrue the critical mass in population to transform from regional centre to a metropolitan centre. 'Bernard Salt' Australia's leading demographer Townsville is a picture of exactly the kind of diverse, dynamic regional economy that will power Australia's passage through the years ahead. Treasurer Wayne Swan

February 7th, 2009, 02:37 PM	#10
MelbourneCity Registered User Join Date: Sep 2002 Location: Melbourne Posts: 1,546 Likes (Received): 1	THIRTY THOUSAND are fighting the fires in VIC tonight. Good luck to them and my thoughts are with those who have lost family, friends and property today. __________________ Vires Acquirit Eundo

February 7th, 2009, 02:48 PM	#11
Burden What to do with my life.. Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 4,446	Fortunately its almost over for South Autralia and Vic before the southernly breezes kick in according to the Weather Channel???? Spare a thought also for our mates across the ditch, the record heat is about to engulf the whole of New Zealand next week, 32°C in Dunedin!!!! Shezzz thats saying something! __________________ Townsville is unlike any other city in Australia. No city of comparable size has quite the connection into the future prosperity of the Australian nation as does Townsville. Townsville's next phase of growth is likely to accrue the critical mass in population to transform from regional centre to a metropolitan centre. 'Bernard Salt' Australia's leading demographer Townsville is a picture of exactly the kind of diverse, dynamic regional economy that will power Australia's passage through the years ahead. Treasurer Wayne Swan

February 7th, 2009, 02:54 PM	#12
Maroon Grown QUEENSLANDER!!! Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Brizzie Posts: 2,148 Likes (Received): 5	whoa. this got bad real quick. not even the 6.00 news had stories as bad as this. not good at all. hopefully the cooler and more humid conditions tomorrow will slow the fires down. are most of the fires results of arsonists? they live for days like this. 46C, windy and dry as a bone. it seems coincidental that all summer nothing has happened and the one day that authorities warn that it will be EXTREME fire conditions, all the fires all of a sudden pop up out of nowhere.

February 7th, 2009, 03:05 PM	#13
city_thing I gots purdy hair Join Date: May 2006 Location: Melbourne. Posts: 6,974 Likes (Received): 177	14 deaths is an incredible amount... but 40! Fuck! Miliux - I went out my house at about 3pm this afternoon and the sky was white. I couldn't really tell if it was just normal clouds, or smoke/haze but it was an off-colour white and incredibly thick. __________________ Calling occupants of interplanetary craft...

February 7th, 2009, 03:21 PM	#14
Phoenix_1 Registered User Join Date: May 2008 Location: Perth Posts: 112 Likes (Received): 0	My thoughts and prayers are with those who have lost people today, and with the firefighters and volunteers who are out there fighting the fires. I really hope the police catch the scum who started some of the fires and charge them with murder.

February 7th, 2009, 04:48 PM	#15
aussiescraperman Registered User Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Melbourne & Brisbane Posts: 1,031 Likes (Received): 0	my dad's out there fighting tonight! ALL the best to the other 29,999 __________________ i can only imagine

February 7th, 2009, 06:38 PM	#16
Drunkill Lord Melbourne Join Date: Jul 2004 Location: Melbourne Posts: 2,474 Likes (Received): 5	Some reletives have had a close call at thier place in Hazelwood North. Their family has retreated to morwell for the night, a friend of theirs almost lost a house but the VFA got it undercontrol and only the back wall and downpipes were burnt. Me and my brother have packed the car with water blankets and food, if we get a call during the night or in the morning we'll be going to help our relatives. __________________ Melbourne, Australia

February 7th, 2009, 07:37 PM	#17
Saigoneseguy Vivat capitalismus Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Saigon Posts: 5,981 Likes (Received): 16	We could be heading to a rough time in the Northern Hemisphere this coming summer... __________________ ' ' Sài Gòn không bao giờ ngủ - Vì tiền không bao giờ đủ '

February 7th, 2009, 11:10 PM	#18
mattie! Registered User Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Melbourne Posts: 273 Likes (Received): 22	25 people confirmed dead now NSW is heading into bushfire type weather today as well with 40C temperatures around the country side.

February 7th, 2009, 11:50 PM	#19
uewepuep Registered User Join Date: Oct 2002 Posts: 2,373 Likes (Received): 15	Fuck that's a lot of people.

February 7th, 2009, 11:53 PM	#20
CP Doom Registered User Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Morwell Posts: 1,221 Likes (Received): 19	Its like a volcano has gone off here, ash everywhere & the smell of acrid smoke, you cant get away from it. Was at work last night, we gave up half way through cos ash kept drifting in under doors & through the skylights. My car went from blue to black & the rain we had was useless. If this doesnt make the government reconsider and make arson a life scentence in prison, it only confirms they are uncaring arseholes.

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