How the battle with Victoria's bushfires was fought and lost

The Weekend Australian ^ | 14th February 2009 | Cameron Stewart and Corrie Perkin

[naturalman1975]

BRUCE Esplin woke at 6am last Saturday with a gnawing feeling in his gut. Victoria's Emergency Services Commissioner knew the odds were not good for the 3582 firefighters and emergency workers who had been placed like toy soldiers across the breadth of his state.

"We were about to face weather beyond our experience, and I just had this feeling of dread," Esplin says.

Across town, Ewan Waller, the Government's chief fire officer, was also on edge. By 7.30am he was already sitting in the Integrated Emergency Co-ordination Centre in central Melbourne, otherwise known as the "war room", where he would spend the next 15 hours alongside chief Country Fire Authority officer Russell Rees. These two men would jointly manage the defence of Victoria against the worst weather forecast in memory.

Barely 60km to the north, thousands of families scattered across the hillside regions of Kinglake, St Andrews and Marysville were waking up to a lazy Saturday. Many of these were tree changers: city commuters who had embraced the lush forested hills for both lifestyle and financial reasons.

They were mostly young families with young kids, and with the temperature tipped to hit 44C with strong, hot wind gusts, it was cooler to stay in their hillside homes than travel.

In Marysville, 20-year-old Lucie O'Meara spent the morning making pancakes for her husband, Luke, and their seven-month-old daughter, Charlotte. She then sat down at her computer and wrote on her Facebook site: "I am so enjoying the viewfrom my desk, Marysville is beautiful."

Just before 9.30am, Stuart Coombs arrived at the Victorian weather bureau's headquarters in Melbourne's Docklands to start his shift.

[naturalman1975]

The whole thing is very long - but well worth reading for anybody who wants to try and understand this tragedy.

[Badeye]

I can only think of one word to describe what I just read here.

Dresden.

My God...

[ArmstedFragg]

Beautifully written. Essentially what it is, though, is a very accurate description of what a firestorm is like. The comment about moving balls of fire is dead accurate. We had a strike team go into similar conditions here in Escondido in ‘07. They had five engines, full protective gear, hydrant water, the whole nine yards. They saw the fire approaching, confidently moved into position to save the neighborhood, and ten minutes later were running for it. It’s an amazing example of the power of nature, difficult to describe well to those who haven’t been in one, but that story’s a chilling one for those of us who have. You’re just utterly helpless.

[ConservativeMind]

Nothing in the article about enviro-wackos not allowing the clearing of brush throughout the area.

[Charlespg]

I know this seems like a dammed fool question but have they ever considered fire bunkers or building underground ?

A earth and concrete house or barn with heavy fireproof shields that could be closed over the doors and windows might be able to withstand the bushfire

[naturalman1975]

Yes, they have - but only a few people have ever done it. It’s probably a good idea and it will be raised and examined at the coming Royal Commission into the fires.