Australians - heat and fire

[Deranged Nasat]

I hope that missing man did indeed get to safety. I'm impressed that no-one's been confirmed dead so far. Here's hoping it's under control soon.

[SmoothieX]

It made it to about 35 here today. The snow melted just enough where my dog wouldn't cut her paws on the ice if I threw a tennis ball for her. After a few throws, I ditched the fleece jacket.

Possible blizzard this coming week through when I have to go to Vermont for work. I love snow, just not driving in a foot of it.

[Miss Chicken]

UPDATE - fires still raging.

About 100 people are missing but police hold grave concerns for only a few of them. Tasmanians have been told to brace themselves for the possibility that there has been deaths.

100s of people are in refuges in Nubeena and Port Arthur but many of those have chosen not to be evacuate to Hobart.

There was a fire alert for Taranna last night. It is still uncertain what the situation there is but reports state that the Tasmanian Devil Park is safe.

The Hobart Showgrounds are being used as a refuge for animals and I believe many horses have been evacuated to there.

[brian577]

Comment Deleted

[Orac Zen]

What they're forecasting for tomorrow is genuinely frightening. I can only hope it doesn't turn out to be as bad as claimed, but I won't count on it.

I loathe summer.

[Miss Chicken]

Luckily for Tasmania we are only expecting a max in the high 20s with only slight winds.

I feel sorry for those elsewhere in Australia who will have to experience temps in the 40s.

The police have search more than 250 houses in the Dunalley area and no bodies found, so it looks like we will escape with no fatalities at all.

[teacake]

My GOD

Oodnadatta (SA) 47.5
Port Augusta (SA) 47.4
Moomba (SA) 45.9
Wilcannia (NSW) 45.0
Ivanhoe (NSW) 45.3
Leonora (WA) 46.9
Forrest (WA) 44.1
Warburton (WA) 47.0
Mandora (WA) 44.2
Urandangi (Qld) 42.9
Birdsville (Qld) 45.1
Swan Hill (Vic) 43.3


http://www.theage.com.au/environment...107-2ccno.html

And Melbourne a civilized 31.

[Australis]

Yep apparently tomorrow is going to be a doozy where I live, hasn't been too bad so far.

[SmoothieX]

Orac Zen wrote:

---

What they're forecasting for tomorrow is genuinely frightening. I can only hope it doesn't turn out to be as bad as claimed, but I won't count on it.

I loathe summer.

I do too, both the season and the ex-wife who was named for it.

I'm a winter and snow and ice kind of guy.

[marillion]

I'm feeling so badly for y'all there.. We're in the process of gearing up for what could be another bad fire season here.. It's the middle of winter here and I've ready been doing media interviews about fire preparedness and prevention.. New Mexico has had three of its worst fire seasons on record here, these last three years and we're hoping we won't get a repeat.. I use bushfire video from Australia in one of my training classes..

I had the honor of working closely with a team of firefighters from Australia in California a few years ago.. Truely great guys and I learned a lot (as I hope they did as well)...

What kind of fire prevention/preparedness programs do you all have down there? Is there government subsidized land management/treatment available?

We primarily use Firewise and Ready Set Go here, and have had some success..

On edit.. I get a daily roundup of "Wildfire in the News" stories.. Here's the primary story about the Australian fires.

Australian Wildfires

[Miss Chicken]

A 31 year old man has been charged with leaving his campfire unattended which lead to the Lake Repulse fire.

The Bicheno fire was started by a lightning strike.

The Forcett (Dunalley fire) was started by a smoldering tree stump. Locals thought the fire had been put out days before the big fire but it seems that the was still slow burning in the root system which flared up.

So no intentionally lit fire at all.

[Miss Chicken]

Just read this -


The temperature at Bega in NSW has risen from 22 degrees at 8am to 38 degrees just after 9am.

[Orac Zen]

It's been a horrible day here. As I type the temperature is still around 30 C and the day-long high wind has, if anything, picked up over the last hour or so. There are currently around 140 fires burning across NSW, including one much closer to home than I ever want to see. We're not in any immediate danger here but knowing that people I know and places I've been to are under threat, and that people I know have been out there all day trying to deal with a fire in these appalling conditions is...yeah.

Several of these fires were deliberately lit. If there's a lower form of life than a person who would even consider deliberately lighting a fire in the sorts of conditions we're presently experiencing, I don't want to know what it might be. I'd like to see all their possessions gathered together and torched. I wonder how much they'd like that.

marillion, you of all people here know what we're up against in this country just now. I'd like to be able to answer your question in an intelligent manner, but I cant, so I'll just thank you for the good thoughts.

Things have deteriorated again in Tasmania and Victoria has also been badly affected. None of this is going to go away any time soon.

Summer? You (general you) can have it.

[Miss Chicken]

In Tasmania, the problem is that a cold front is coming through. That sounds good but the problems is high winds came before it - whipping the fires up again.

Earlier in the day a convoy of cars, caravans etc were escorted by police out of the the Peninsula. Most of them were tourists who had been trapped at Nubeena and Port Arthur. A second convoy was meant to make the trip but it was forced to go back when the fires flared up again.

My friend Janet found her three horses, safe but very spooked. They had been waterbombed by helicopters.

Now Janet's father's place - up the North West Coast near Montumana is under threat. Her elderly father has been evacuated but his much younger wife has unwisely decided to stay behind and defend the home.

[Deckerd]

You know it's bad when Beeb 1 give it a prime news slot. The Aussie PM was all over the news like a rash last night. Stay safe everyone.