Just wanted you to know that barring any major developements, the bushfire emergency in NSW is over…for now. An army of 3000 volunteers from all over Australia got together, and through what can only be called a masterwork of planning, preparation and coordination, backed up by brave souls who dared walk into that inferno, the battle has been won.
We will still be keeping an eye on the ones that remain, and I am happy to advise that they are all either contained, under control, or in “mop up” status (meaning they are more or less out, but we are keeping watch to ensue no flareups. Cinders can still get into the air, and start spot fires. No complacency and no letting down our guard.)
Backburning and other hazard reduction work continues, the smoke we saw yesterday was a controlled burn closer to the city outskirts. The media and the Operations staff keep everyone informed, no nasty surprises. If the cold weather holds, firefighters are confident they can set up perimeters and keep any possible further outbreaks contained.
The sad part is that this was a horrible accident, caused by a Defence Dept explosives training exercise. At the time there were no warnings and no fire ban. This could have happened anytime, and to any of us. It was no one’s fault.
Aussies are a hardy breed, we have to be, to call them heroes is the understatement of the century. None of them see themselves as heroes..they just saw they were needed, came, and did what they had trained for. The death toll stands at two, and could have been a lot higher. The credit for so few lives lost belongs to the Fire Operations Staff, who worked day and night to keep people informed, and whose skill saw to it that the firefighters were where they were needed, when they were needed.
Years of training, preparation and teamwork when it mattered met this catastrophe head on.
Two lives have been lost, a homeowner who suffered a heart attack, and a firefighter pilot, who died when the wing of his plane snapped off.
Pilot David Black, 43, of Trangie, NSW.
Walter Linder, 63, of Lake Munmorah.
Its believed the semi-retired draughtsman had a heart attack or succumbed to intense stress as he desperately tried to stop fire from taking hold of his beloved home, a one-storey former homestead.
I bid you stand, and humbly ask that you pray for them and for their families
Summer has only begun, so for now…we wait.
Praise God! Simply enough.