Bushfires terrifying sight
Settling to something meaningful and joyful as 2020 dawned was a reality beyond reach when I watched the terrifying news and footage as the Australian wildfires took hold across the continent. It is hard to comprehend the scale and the speed at which the fires are travelling.
Local volunteer firefighter Grant Marshall’s description (page 3) that the fire jumps 300 metres or 3km, shows just what the communities and wildlife are up against.
A nephew, a volunteer firefighter in
Sydney, was called to the front. There was a picture of David doused in pink fire retardant dropped from the air, with flames reaching to the sky.
My sadness too is for the millions of animals that have perished; I am bereft for them all, as are many around the world. The only thing we can do is donate to a cause. I have donated to the Port Macquarie koalas. Australian comedienne Celeste Barber has raised more than A$25 million ($26m) for volunteer firefighters. But there is a bigger picture underscoring this tragedy. The Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison buggered off on holiday to Hawaii at the start of the fires, and had to rush back amidst the call which echoed his marketing slogan ‘where the bloody hell are you?’. His lack of empathy has raised the ire of Australians. He is reported to have visited firefighters and was told by one firefighter that he had not eaten, to which Morrison replied, ‘I’ll let you get back to it’. Not a meal, but the fire. Instead, it was the Muslim and Shikh communities who have cooked meals and donated bottles of water to those on the front line.
This is climate crisis which at first
Morrison denied was happening. Australians are now talking about the Aboriginal cultural ways of back burning. With millions of hectares burned, communities destroyed and an unprecedented loss of animal life which could see the koala go extinct, the $2 billion Morrison has committed to the bushfire recovery rebuild is going to take on a different look, surely.
This is where we build resilience, and in so doing we are making a better contribution as a species to our impact on the Earth. There’s a saying in my head: ‘Lest we forget’.
■ Donations can be made through the Red Cross and Salvation Army websites.