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events|January 2003 Fires| |
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January
2003 Fires (2) |
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the following week, our firefighters had crews out most days, still trying to
contain that McIntyre's Hut fire. The wind was blowing gently easterly and the
weather was relatively mild. The local media kept reporting the fires as being
in remote areas of Namadgi and the Brindabellas, but those of us who enjoy a
little recreational meandering up there were aware that there is direct line
of sight from those fire areas to southern suburban Canberra, and the hot, dry
winds blow that way. |
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The
crews that were sent up included experienced firefighters, as well as numerous
new recruits who had come through the Basic Training program during the
previous 12 months. The glowing golden overalls gathered soot and dirt as
their owners gained experience. |
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McIntyre's
Hut fire, Alpha sector, 11 January 2003. Eddy Tillotson (in dirty jacket)
in front of the camera for a change, with a crew of varying degrees of
goldness. Photograph by Karina Martin.
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| As
well as rakehoeing, they were engaged in fighting fire with fire by backburning,
to attempt to contain the main fire by burning away combustible undergrowth
when conditions were right to control the burnoff. If you ask any firefighter
whether their preferred instrument is a rakehoe or a drip torch, you will
always get the same answer! The firey's pet name for a rakehoe is a "black
snake"! |
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Backburn
at McIntyre's Hut fire, Alpha sector, 12 January 2003. Photograph
by Eddy Tillotson.
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While
a backburn can look quite spectacular (and that is usually what you see on the
TV news as the fireys don't tend to let the TV crews into the heart of the inferno
in case they get barbecued), the picture makes it clear that the fire just sizzles
brightly through the undergrowth without crowning in the trees, as can happen
in a genuine wildfire. The possums can go up, the wombats can go down and the
roots and seeds of the vegetation remain viable for regrowth. |
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Backburn
at McIntyre's Hut fire, Alpha sector, 12 January 2003. Photograph by Eddy
Tillotson.
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Some
of the younger recruits seemed to be quite enjoying themselves at this stage. |
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McIntyre's
Hut fire, 14 January 2003. Photograph by John Cooper.
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Things
did get a bit murky at times in the smoke, however. The firefighting game was
proving to lack glamour, and was also providing an element of frustration as
the fire refused to be contained. |
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Firefighters
disappearing in the smoke at the McIntyre's Hut fire, 14 January 2003. Photograph
by John Cooper.
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