Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
is an ever-growing likelihood most of us will experience significant disruptions in the flow of
electricity and goods at some point in our lives. Stocking up on a few extra supplies, learning
some new skills, and making a few emergency contingency plans doesn't take a lot of time or
money, and it's cheap insurance that can foster peace of mind in turbulent times.
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After living in the States off and on for several years, in 2008 Andrew and Mary Hall moved back to their home in Bux-
ton, Australia, so they could be closer to their aging parents. It was a modest three-bedroom two-bath house with exter-
ior walls of mud brick (adobe) that helped keep the home's interior cool during the hot Australian summers. With large
eaves, a metal roof, and mud brick walls, many would consider their home to be quite fire resistant, but its construc-
tion proved no match for the forces of nature that turned the neighboring towns of Buxton and Marysville into deadly
infernos on Australia's tragic “Black Saturday” of February 7, 2009.
The prior week, the weather had been extremely hot, with several days recording temperatures of over 40˚C (104˚F).
On that Saturday morning, record-breaking temperatures combined with long-term drought conditions and high winds
(over 60 mph) to generate the most serious fire conditions that anyone could remember. An official “extreme fire alert”
was issued along with a strict “no burning” command. Mary remembers looking at the thermometer on that day, and
it read a blistering 47˚C (117˚F)! Around 4:30 in the afternoon, a neighbor came by and pointed out a large ominous
plume of smoke rising to the southwest. Andrew dialed 000 (The Aussie equivalent to America's 911), and it just cut
out. When attempts to call the fire department also failed, they decided to pack and go. Knowing that they did not have
enough water and other resources to stay and fight should a major wildfire break out, Andrew and Mary's fire plan had
always been to evacuate. They packed some clothes, the dog, a few files, their computers, and a couple bicycles into
the car and left their home, hoping and praying it would still be standing upon their return.
Andrew and Mary headed for a friend's place with a defensible piece of property that included a swimming pool and a
dammed reservoir, plus an extensive supply of fire-fighting materials such as pumps, a tractor, and backpack sprayers.
Unlike Andrew and Mary's property, which backed up to a steeply wooded hillside, their friend's property was mostly
grassland, making it easier to hold back a bushfire. About 10:30 pm a 3-meter (10-foot) high wall of fire descended
upon that property, and for the next eight hours family, friends, and neighbors fought to keep the flames and flying em-
bers at bay. Exhausted, around 6:00 am they were able to catch an hour and a half of fitful sleep before braving the
drive back to their home to survey the damage. At this point, they still had hopes that a favorable wind direction had
spared their home. As they walked up the hill to their front yard, they saw that all but three mud brick walls had been
totally obliterated. Except for the few things they had packed in their car they day before, all of their personal belong-
ings and the tools for Andrew's bicycle repair business had been reduced to cinders and scraps of molten metal.
Andrew also had a commercial coffee roaster housed in a shed on his partner's property just outside of the neigh-
boring town of Marysville. The entire commercial section of Marysville, except for the bakery, had also been destroyed
by the fire, but miraculously, the shed that the coffee roaster was stored in, as well as their friend's home, had survived.
Both were scorched by the flames, but spared the destruction that had taken all but 14 of over 400 buildings in Marys-
ville. In spite of having lost their home, one of their businesses, and nearly all their personal possessions, they fared
much better than many others in the surrounding area who had lost their lives or loved ones. On what has become
known as “Black Saturday,” bush fires took the lives of 173 people, wiped out whole towns, and entire families were
found incinerated in their cars while trying to escape the inferno.
In addition to the details of their trials and losses, Mary also had this to say in her official statement to the local police,
“I don't believe we would have done anything any differently. As far as having adequate warning, we weren't given any.
Other than knowing that it was a high fire danger day, there was no real warning. I don't know that having had any other
warning would have made a difference. I know I didn't hear any siren or warning sound that day.” Like my friends Mary
and Andrew, knowing when to stand and fight, and when to pack and run, clearly meant the difference between life and
death for hundreds of folks on that blazing hot Saturday in Australia!
