Emergency Fire Tips*

Seven crows lined up on my fence and cried for a good fifteen minutes until I got up. Again, I thought  'Fire'. It was the wind. Waroona, on the way to Harvey, and another forrested area  near Collie, is struggling with fire due to the wind. Homes have already been lost. FDES is advising people to head for large open spaces (school grounds/sports fields), dams or swimming pools or remain in their homes if fire poses a danger. Long drives to work along forrested highways and recent fires in my own area have forced me to look at measures to take if caught and unable to leave, mainly due to closed roads. Residents are sometimes not allowed back in to residential areas and there is a chance that families could get seperated, while children or the elderly could be left on their own. 

'Life Gear' have glow sticks which can be purchased at places like Big W for the princely sum of $2.00. They come with a cord so they can be worn or carried. The "Glow Reds" have a small whistle, while a click of one button allows it to be used as a glow stick, a flashlight, as well as  a pulsing flasher. A simple but exceptionally smart item which can be kept in the house or in the car. Anyone could use this to get attention if injured, trapped or lost in the dark. Each child in the family could have one to grab in the event of an emergency or if there is any chance of seperation. *

If I can't leave the house, I have decided that a tiled bathroom (ceramic tiles should be  reasonably fire resistant), and a fire blanket to throw over myself,  would be the safest room to shelter if trapped by flame racing over. Many of the new houses have plastic baths. I do fill this when fire threatens, but I imagine it would melt at some point. Fire blankets can be purchased from major retailers now for around $20.00. I have decided that I can increase my chances of survival with one in the car to throw over myself if fire passes over the vehicle. It is handy to remember that the old telephones (not digital ones powered by battery) can be plugged in and used in homes in  the event of electricity being cut. I try and leave a large water container on my porch, plus an eye rinse bottle...Water can be run over small burns or a limb can be immersed in a small bucket until medical help can be obtained. Hose burns down gently if that's all you have got...the longer the better. Spray water bottles will offer great relief in the heat if the power is off or you are stranded somewhere.



* There are other glow sticks available (some phosphorous based; some foil wrapped - usually found in the camping department) but the Life Gear glow sticks come in red and green. They are clearly marked "200 hours". Big W in  Kwinana Hub have theirs in the hardware department at the moment. 

Fri Jan 30. Areas of fire damage on East side of Wellard.

I woke up a few times on Wednesday night. At one stage, I could hear a loud roar of  hoses and voices talking softly. Not in front of our homes, but around the corner, volunteer fire fighters were burning and hosing down containment lines. The world slept, oblivious to the heat and smoke.  On Thursday morning, men and women were putting out small spot-fires along  a road through Leda Nature reserve. This afternoon, every now and again, the wind blows and I can smell fresh, cold charcoal. 200 hectares of native parklands were destroyed. Close to where these photos were taken, two rural properties were severely damaged... water tanks, fences and  buildings were hit by flames.

DFES Fire Map. Leda Nature Reserve. /Kwinana

A map of the two  current fires adjacent to Leda nature Reserve (Wed Jan 28th) can be found on:


http://www.dfes.wa.gov.au/alerts/Alert%20Attachments/2015-01-28/293625_Baldivis_Public_Info_1050_28012015.pdf 

Eyes flow freely...

I didn't take too much notice when I heard two sets of sirens. I'd just had a glass of iced water after climbing out the shower...fatigued from driving a few hundred kilometres from the centre of the Wheatbelt at the end of a  night shift. It was the vibration from the helicopter that stopped me sinking into an exhausted sleep. A look out my front door shook me awake. I threw a small orange bag  that I'd bought from the Wild Coast of Kwa Zulu on to my bed, before deciding  to see if my neighbours were aware. They had just walked over to  my porch to alert me…it was close.   I think I threw in a pair of khaki "boardies", some black long pants, two tee-shirts (one which said, "screaming, naked, hysterical" on the back),  a towel, my toiletry bag and two pairs of spotted navy blue underpants from Target. Bugger taking any possessions with me and I would die if I didn't have clean underpants.  I looked up and remembered the vision of the low-flying yellow plane swooping over my trees and my Chinese warrior statue. I felt humbled.  Like an image from 'War of the Worlds', an enormous,  orange chopper  flew in and rose out of the smoke,  making  great circles over me as it dropped tons of water from a red hose. I could see drops falling as it circled above me, expecting to feel the spray.  I was worried about the wind…it had been a bit gusty, which could change the conditions in a moment. It was also hot. Not unbearable, suffocating heat, but skin- seering, blindingly hot.  A crow landed on the eave of the roof next to me and our eyes connected for a few seconds. She usually brings her  baby in to drink and sometimes leaves  it  in the tree opposite. The baby crow was there now, watching her mother.  When the police set up road blocks, I heard the cockatoos. They were stressed and had been calling from different spots in the reserve, watching. The tiny group of three cockatoos settled in a land-mark tree across from me. Their fledgling was only a few months old but it was nearly bigger than they were. For a few weeks, a male had flown across the Leda reserve a few times a day with food for the female. I knew there was a nest somewhere. One day, the pair began bringing the chick with them and I still feel excited when I watch them feed. The baby cockatoo usually sits higher in the trees while the two adults fed a bit lower down…they call the whole time they are feeding.  It's feathers are still dark, so its hard to see if it's a girl or male. They slept in the trees one night, opposite my house and the baby cockatoo shrieked and  made delighted little noises when it caught me stepping outside at two in the morning. Today, they pulled up their crown feathers and called from the tree. I sat down. After a few minutes, they finally flew on.  My neighbours were sitting on their wall and some kids were sitting down in front of my house. Standing at my fence, I was overwhelmed with happiness when the danger of the fire  was over.I cried because I was happy, turning my face to the side so I could wipe away the water flowing from my eyes. Overnight, crews assembled and filled their trucks with water next to my house. ..most of the night. I didn't sleep but the sound of the crew's voices and the blue and red lights flickering around me, with sound of the water,  gave me the confidence of a viking. Many, many people kept us safe last night, asking nothing of us except that we be. 

* 75 hectares of the reserve have burnt in two fires since Sunday.  DFES are giving safety and evacuation advice on their website. Leda Nature Reserve is a small, precious, natural space that is home to native owls and other amazing birds. It's trees are used as vital landmarks by birds that fly long distances, such as the red-tailed black cockatoos and Carnaby Cockatoos. They regularly take shelter in groups before storms and, amazingly, because it is a feeding ground,  use it as a large bird airport. Hail breaks their regular flight paths, so when similar reserves have been eaten into by housing, large groups of endangered and native birds get smashed by the hail and take years to recover their numbers. Hence, this is a vital but fragile bird-space.

Live/ 23:45- Containment. Fire Crews at Village of Wellard

Live/ 25 th January 2015: Fire Crews ...looking like packing up...but the night's just started. Leda Reserve

25 th January 2015: Fire at Leda Reserve

Aerial and ground fire crews have spent the past few hours putting out a fire in Leda Reserve that was dangerously close to Leda and the Village at Wellard. We have been watching the stunning co-ordination of the  teamwork of fire fighters, pilots, the SES and police and others. We stood in the flickering shadows cast by the chopper blades on our gardens. The Australia Day fireworks tomorrow night will pale by comparison. 

You are just a seed...

A 1962 televised cartoon series , 'The Jetsons',  could be called a seed for television programmes in the science fiction genre. Made in colour, 'The Jetsons'  explored every future technological option that society might face and use in it's social structure. Later, in 1965, the early black and white episodes of 'Lost in Space' were put to air in America, before migrating to New Zealand and Australia. Avid followers watched the use of communication devices, teleportation, space blankets, silver insulation fabric and velcro. I am sorry to say this  but I grew up with life on  the Jupiter 2, not 'Neighbours'. It was fantastic. 

During the same year, the British went one step further and brought us the 'Thunderbirds'. The concept was based on  an international rescue team formed by an ex-astronaut... this was a hybrid formulation created as a result of the making of early comics, film and sci-fi programmes. 

Each series had it's own individual format, using notions of space travel and NASA for reference. Man hadn't yet landed on the moon*. These programmes then seeded spin-offs and rival programmes such as 'Star Trek', becoming the reference for narrative and space culture used in entertainment on T.V. 

Dheborah.

(*Age signifier)