Bushfires in Australia

[Dr Ray]

Devastation beyond belief

The bushfires are in southern and Western Australia. We’ve had an incredible drought that has left the build up of fuel tinder dry.
Lightning and idiots who deliberately lit the fires have caused devastation including loss of human life, total or partial destruction of property, and an estimated half a billion (note billion) deaths of native wildlife.
I live next to a part of the Great Barrier Reef at Cairns (far north east of Australia). Our wet season is late and will be mild although we are not in drought.
We are expecting rain again today but where the fires are no rain is expected with temperatures in the 40s C ( well over 100 F).
Yesterday in a western suburb of Sydney which over 3 hours jet travel time from Cairns, the temperature reached 48.9 (120 F) the hottest place on earth.
My son Craig a check captain - Airbus - could tell me that ground crew at Canberra have been issued masks and he said he could see fires “everywhere”. Also the smoke was incredible (width of Europe).
Our neighbors - New Zealand have been copping our smoke and even their glaciers have turned a Carmel Color.
We simply need rain to solve many of the problems but: I wonder what will happen to the people and their animals whose houses etc have been burnt to nothing but ash etc???

 

[Opposite Pole]

The scale of this disaster is truly terrifying.

 

[Bullthrower338]

God bless y’all, prayers for rain!

 

[CAustin]

The scale of this disaster is truly terrifying.

my prayers are with you and your countrymen sir. I read today that the PM there has called out the military in levels not seen since World War 2.....good for the PM. Hope that rain will come soon!

 

[nztimb]

It is an unfortunate result of green policy where the knowledgable forestry management who kept access roads open, fire breaks and forest floor liter cleared with tactical fire during the safe seasons have been replaced with complete hands off approach with the current disasterous results. Arsonists have been a huge cause along with lightening strikes with near 2000 homes lost, many people have perished or are missing and millions of animals dead.

 

[smokepole]

So sad. I had the opportunity to hunt the NT in June. Dry there then. Cannot imagine what it must be like there now. Hope and pray rains come soon. God bless your country.

 

[CoElkHunter]

Very tragic situation! My thoughts and prayers to everyone in Australia affected by these disastrous fires. May rain come soon!

 

[Ridgewalker]

So sorry for all of Australia! Such a sad situation. Here’s hoping cruel Mother Nature gives you rain soon!
We will keep you in our hearts and thoughts.

 

[Dr Ray]

It is an unfortunate result of green policy where the knowledgable forestry management who kept access roads open, fire breaks and forest floor liter cleared with tactical fire during the safe seasons have been replaced with complete hands off approach with the current disasterous results. Arsonists have been a huge cause along with lightening strikes with near 2000 homes lost, many people have perished or are missing and millions of animals dead.

Yep!
But of course now they’ll blame the federal government and not the policies of the various states
Also
Somehow Australia is the worst climate changer in the world even though we contribute only 1.3% of emissions!

 

[Nyati]

Really sad to hear that, we see it on TV every day, a tragedy !

Hands off management of forestry does not work, the underbrush has to be cleaned, and fire breaks maintained, otherwise fire cannot not be stopped.

 

[meigsbucks]

Prayers for all of Australia. Twenty + people dead, homes destroyed, a half BILLION animals killed. Such a tragic situation.

 

[Hunter4752001]

CAustin. The so called military call out was nothing more than a political stunt. It came less than 24 hrs after he was abused on the fire grounds by the victims, the firefighters and even his own party members.

Nothing but an attempt to be seen to be 'doing something'. It appears that the more effort went into politically slick social media videos than into any planning. Even the Emergency Services Commissioners coordinating the fire fight weren't told and only learnt about it through the media coverage.

The facts are that 90 % of the Reserve aren't trained, equipped or clothed for fire duties (even the uniforms are a fire risk these days). Those Reserve units with vehicles, resources and plant useful to the task were already deployed and in action, as they have been in every natural disaster in our history. Many of the Reserve members in rural areas are also members of their local Country Fire Authority (volunteer based rural fire service) brigades and had been fighting the fires since day one.

The PM is nothing more than a lowlife inner city advertising exec who entered politics. He stripped huge amounts of funding out of rural services so he could claim to balance the budget and then the moment the fires started he secretly sunk off to Hawaii on holidays leaving the country to burn. He only came back to Australia after the media tracked him down.

From the NSW Fire Map:

From the Victorian map

 

[Hunter4752001]

ps Sorry to vent, but its hard when people you know are directly affected.

 

[nztimb]

Police Working on Premise that Arsonists Started Bushfires in Australia – 200 People Arrested So Far – 85% of Fires Blamed on Humans

https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/20...arrested-so-far-85-of-fires-blamed-on-humans/

 

[BRICKBURN]

We used to get more of the arsonists starting bush fires when people were given employment off the street to fight bush fires. Now that fire fighters require training before ever entering the bush, the number is way down.
We still have them though.

Bloody sad really.

 

[Ridgewalker]

Arsonists should be dropped in the middle of the fires!
I worked briefly for the BLM in the early 1970s and fought one small forest fire and one big lodge fire. The work doesn’t get finished until long after the fire is out.

This is brutal on man and beast!

 

[nztimb]

Every one of these arsonists should be charged with attempted murder at the very least

 

[Dr Ray]

These might give you an idea of the scale of the fires in Australia

 

[Dr Ray]

Every one of these arsonists should be charged with attempted murder at the very least

I thoroughly agree!

 

[375 Ruger Fan]

We used to get more of the arsonists starting bush fires when people were given employment off the street to fight bush fires. Now that fire fighters require training before ever entering the bush, the number is way down.
We still have them though.

Bloody sad really.

My Montana elk outfitter told me a story about his grandfather fighting forest fires back in the 1920s and 30s: Employment was scarce, so it was good money fighting fires. He said his grandfather would say, "We fought the fire and fought the fire and it still went out!"