BEADELL’S TRUCK
LATER in our desert sojourn we visited Len Beadell’s Gunbarrel Road Construction Party’s burnt-out truck at the remote Aboriginal community of Kiwirrkurra, and I mused on the thought that maybe spinifex had played more than a passing role in the burning and subsequent destruction of Len’s ration truck that occurred back in 1960.
Now I could be wrong, and certainly Len in his book, Beating about the Bush, which details the incident, doesn’t mention spinifex, per se. But a lot can be deduced by what is not said and from Len’s pic of the truck which shows the front of the vehicle, where an electrical fire would have had a bigger chance of starting, relatively unscathed, compared to the rear of the truck which was near destroyed – possibly from spinifex building up around the exhaust pipe!
So, if that could happen to very experienced desert travellers as Len and his men, what are the lessons learnt for mere mortals such as you and I in more modern, and dare I say, more susceptible vehicles?
Modern diesels are just as susceptible to spinifex fires as are petrol vehicles; maybe with the DPF burn-off, even more so! Do your DPF burns – they burn at between 900 and 1200°C – on a pretty regular basis and in a cleared area free of any grass or spinifex.
When in spinifex country, check under your vehicle regularly; at least once a day! If there is a noticeable build-up, make it much more often. On some trips we’ve been checking and removing spinifex every hour or so. A pair of garden or welding gloves and a thick piece of wire will help remove the spiky stuff. This is most important – prevention is much better than trying to put the fire out once it has started!
Like Jo, we’ve found the small 1kg or 1.5kg powder fire extinguishers, commonly seen and fitted to vehicles, are, while not completely useless, pretty limited in what they can put out. Go for something bigger
– we carry a 4.5kg powder extinguisher nowadays.
Secondly, a spray water bottle is a very good option; the bigger the better. Maybe, as I suggested to Jo, the Ryobi 15-litre water sprayer would be the go – they have a big lid for refilling quickly from a jerry can and a long wand for reaching under the vehicle … and you can use it at home in the garden.
Have a grab bag with your valuables in it, including a sat phone or satellite communicator. Finally, travel with somebody else, who can transport you to safety if your pride and joy goes up in smoke!