Defend your home or evacuate CFA advi…
Defend your home or evacuate
- CFA advice needs review
The CFA rightly promote the concept of everyone having a bushfire plan. They also tell people to decide whether they will stay and defend their property or evacuate. The reality is that none of us are qualified to make such decisions and this advice gives people a false sense of security.
As the tragedy of the bushfires unfolds, it disturbs me to see footage of people in shorts and thongs defending their homes. We watch as residents take comfort in filling their roof spouts with water or filling up the kids wading pool and then waiting for the fire to approach. That comfort could well place their lives in jeopardy.
In the 2006 bushfires, an eighty year old man on a property at Whitlands asked me, in my capacity as a CFA officer, whether he should stay and defend or should he leave.
He had a dam full of water, a massive petrol driven pump with 100 metres of 75mm diameter fire hose all laid out ready for action. Reasonable preparation one would think.
- Image via Wikipedia
The reality was that he didn’t stand a chance with such facilities. A four inch hose full of water is completely unmanageable. It really needed a team of men to control it.
His backup plan was to retreat to a huge enclosed tin shed should the fire come in fast. That, most likely, would have been fatal. As the metal heats up in a bushfire, the beams expand and invariably, the roof falls down inside the walls. I was able to convince him to leave.
Life is too precious to risk in a bushfire and I believe the CFA advice needs reviewing.
You can view THE LIVE FIRE MAp here to see the current situation
Related articles
- Black Saturday; 65-100 Victorians Dead ? (benbarren.com)
- At least 108 dead in Australia inferno (guardian.co.uk)
Premier takes action
Premier John Brumby says Victoria may need to review its bushfire policy of ’stay and defend or leave early’ in light of the state’s death toll.
He said the government and authorities’ long-standing approach of advising people to have a bushfire plan ready to either stay to defend their homes or leave well before the fire became a threat had in many cases not saved people at the weekend.
‘I think when the time comes to examine in-depth all of the issues that occurred on Saturday, obviously fire policy will be one of those areas,’ Mr Brumby told Fairfax Radio Network. more …
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Mere houses can be rebuilt. No one should lose their life defending a house from a fire.
Kieran Bennett
8 February 2009 at 8:58 pm
A four inch hose requiring someone to stand in the middle of the fire to try and protect a home? Why are these homes only being protected by centuries-old methods. It appears the problem of protecting homes is similar to managing an electricity grid so Australia needs to be looking some of the techniques used in Smart Grid technology (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Smart_grid) used for managing electricity networks. In the case of fire, the fire front passes quite quickly so sensors that will automatically deliver a large volume of water for a short period of time to protect the home (or group of homes). A series of local local water storage points would be required for each group of homes. Australia’s Universities can provide the solution for the best water delivery system and the best method of triggering the delivery. Compared to the massive cost of losing hundred of homes and lives, the development and deployment of such a network would be far cheaper. Australia is looking at infrustructure projects to boost employment during the recession. Why not use some of these these resources to boost home protection.
Dennis Asher
9 February 2009 at 4:05 am
I recall being under threat of bushfire in Gippsland a couple of years back, and made the decision to stay and defend. I recall asking a CFA official at a town meeting where the evacuation area was, if required. I was told – there is none, you stay in your house until the fire front passes. To this, I replied – Ash Wednesday – you may decide to stay and defend, but it turns out the fire is too ferocious to stay in your house (I recall the effect of the fireballs) and need to flee to a safe area while your house explodes. The reply was, once again – if you stay and defend, you stay in your house until the fire front passes.
I can’t help feeling, if people are allowed to stay and defend – they need to have somewhere to go that will give them half a chance if things turn out bad and they don’t have time to leave town.
Jez
4 March 2009 at 4:46 am
After reading the article, I feel that I really need more information on the topic. Could you suggest some resources please?
How to Get Six Pack Fast
16 April 2009 at 2:21 am
Interesting that the police are saying they’re closing in on the Marysville arsonist. He’s due for a 2nd interview tonight. He hasn’t been named yet but apparently he’s a CFA volunteer from country Victoria.
I actually think I know who he is. I won’t say yet (nor will I say how I know) but if his initials are J.M. … I’m a genius.
(So I’m probably wrong!)
Ray Dixon (Bright)
16 April 2009 at 7:21 pm
I will be keenly watching
Greg Naylor
16 April 2009 at 11:03 pm