Australia is certainly a land of extremes. While I was making preparations on Saturday to head to flooded North Queensland, a fire in Victoria was raging and taking lives and homes with it as it moved through bushland. So far the tally of the dead is 181 and expected to rise even further. It's estimated that over 1000 homes have been lost and more than 7000 people have been displaced.
The tropical Cairns district is so lush, wet and humid it's hard to imagine a fire up there would ever get a chance to take hold. Victoria had been suffering a drought for the past twelve years and the week leading up to the fires the temperatures had been up around 48 degrees (118F). It was dry and one small spark would have been all that was needed to create a bushfire. At least one person has been charged with arson but with those conditions all that would have been needed was a piece of discarded glass to light up a nearby dry leaf to create the same effect.
One great thing about Australians is their generosity in times of trouble. Even those in flooded Ingham have donated generously to the bushfire appeal. North Queenslanders in particular are known for their easy going nature. The supermarket shelves were, without exaggeration, bare because trucks carrying supplies had not been able to make it through due to the flood waters. Nearly everyone I spoke to up there had a "she'll be right mate" attitude. They're used to the monsoonal rains that cause things to rot and roads to flood. Their concerns were for the people of Victoria who had lost loved ones, homes and livlihoods.
We live a long distance from both these areas of natural disaster and right now I'm forever grateful that I was able to return home to my family whose only concerns have been to try to get themselves organised enough each day to get to work and school.
1 comment:
those fires sound so scary. I heard the winds were so high, that if you could see the fire, it was impossible to drive fast enough to escape it. I am so tired of natural disasters. I've been through two in three years. I think we've all fulfilled our quota now.
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