MARCH 2002 - XMAS BUSHFIRES

Christmas Bushfires
Certainly here in NSW, Christmas in 2001 was from a weather point of view, one of the worst I can remember. Hot westerly winds blasting all before them, temperatures soaring into the 40s. Our family Christmas marquee on the lawn, all of a sudden thought it was some sort of huge white Pelican and simply spread its sides and tried to fly away. Me in the middle screaming at unfortunate staff and working students (who had pulled short straws and were working over Christmas) to hang onto the blasted thing while I tried to tie it to the trees, fences and verandah posts. Toggs, our visiting Swaziland student, who is probably part African Bushman, as he is tiny, has hold of one flap which ends up horizontal to the ground, some four metres above the the ground, with an airborne Toggs grimly hanging on for life, almost perfectly aligned with the domestic power lines serving the house.
The power lines are about 20 metres down wind, or one second away, if the ropes I am tying off, slip. Barbequed South African for Christmas would have taken some explaining! Anyhow the great marquee escape, and the odd bit of sawdust (I don’t think it was dried horse manure) travelling 800 metres from the stables to appear from time to time in our Pimms and Lemonade, or my Brandy Sauce, while I once again won the World Champion Plum Pudding Threepence Finder title, all makes for a good laugh… afterwards.
However, some people were not so fortunate and I know there are many horror stories out there. Diana Tremain is now 27 years of age, and married to her husband, Jason, for these past five years. Home for them is a property at Yeovil out Dubbo way in western NSW. Diana’s maiden name is Hill, and she, along with her father, John and mother, Jill, have been riders and organizers in all three Olympic disciplines.
John ran and ‘cross country course built’ the Dubbo ODE for many years, in the 80’s. Jill was president of the Dubbo Dressage Club and was one of the main movers and shakers of the NSW Dressage Championships held at Dubbo in 1999. She is currently competing at Prix St Georges level. Diana started off Eventing, winning Junior novice when she was 13 years old at Dubbo in 1987. I remember it as it was a very tough track, and I was the only senior to go clear in the novice, and so won the class. Diana however, also went clear, and I can remember thinking that I wouldn’t really be able to boast about how well I had gone when a 13 year old girl had done the same. Diana went on to ride at World Cup Showjumping level, and John can still be found at many agricultural shows as the showjumping course designer.
Thursday December 20 and the fires in NSW hadn’t yet reached the intensity that was to make World headline news. There were however frightening tell tale signs of what was about to unfold. The Parks and Wildlife Authority (better know as the Sparks and Wildfires Authority by some bushies) had been back burning in the Goobang State Forrest (real name!) trying to control the main fire in NSW at that time (one that had originally started as a controlled burn!). Well the wind changed, didn’t it, and all the Bush Fire Brigades from near and far were called in, including the Yeovil Bush Fire Brigade. Diana’s husband Jason left home to fight fires at 6.00 am on that awful day as part of the Bush Fire Brigade. The westerlies howled across the State and the Brigades and volunteers were forced into defending homes and to their credit, on that day, no homes were lost. The fire however went beserk, racing across properties and consuming fences and equipment and livestock, as if there was no tomorrow. It outpaced the Brigades and at times, was so intense that big road signs were reduced to moulten metal that could be carried away in a bucket!
By mid afternoon, Diana who had stayed home to look after the property knew that the farm was in dire danger. The smoke had visibililty down to 100 metres, and breathing was difficult. Diana and Jason had 1000 weaner lambs on a grass stubble paddock, and Diana knew that once the fire got into that paddock it would burn like crazy and the loss of those lambs would financially cripple them. There was just her and the motorbike, so away she went. This stubble paddock was right next to the road and working the lambs on her own was difficult. The aim was to get all of the lambs out of the paddock into the laneway and then move them on down to the main yards about one kilometres away. It took time and the fire was suddenly in sight. It was 6 pm and the sheep were moving much too slowly. Still Diana was on her own. Diana knew that to save these weaner lambs would be a miracle. She also knew that the main flock of 2500 ewes who were some 3 kilometres further down the property on a hill paddock were as good as dead. Still Diana pushed on, leaving some of the slower lambs in an effort to speed up the stronger lambs. She makes it, sort of. The flames are all around but she has managed to get about 700 lambs into the dry dusty yards. The flames are leaping and racing across the stubble paddocks and there is nothing she can do for the 300 or so slower lambs still in the laneway or back in stubble. Tears as streaming down her face as she prowls the perimeter of the stock yards, using old bags wetted from the water trought to keep the tongues of fire from the rescued lambs.
Then out of the flames comes a white Toyota ute. Queensland number places. A young guys - mid 20’s - who Diana has never seen, screeches to a dusty halt and sprints over. "Have you got any more sheep," he asks. Diana points down the laneway and says "Four kilometres down that laneway you come to the hill paddock. Just run straight into it. All of our ewes are there."
"Right oh," said the Queenslander, "Can I take the bike?" and then Diana noticed a post in the yards on fire and rushed over with her bag to resume the fight. Later, Diana says she didn’t even hear the bike roar away she was so pre-occupied.
At about 7 that night, fire crews started appearing and the fight to save the house and the yards and the 700 remaining sheep was consolidated and then won. It wasn’t until about 11.30 pm that night that the immediate threat was over and Diane remembers to tell the tale of the Queensland bloke. Did anyone know him? Was he OK? Where was he? Nobody knew him.
Diana went to the machinery shed and there was the motorbike. On closer inspection, there was what was left of the motorbike. It had been nearly new. Now it was bashed and bent and burnt and showed all the signs of having done a really hard day. The Queensland ute was gone and the mystery man seemed to have vanished just as quickly as he had appeared. The next morning, with dread, Diana and Jason head out at first light to the back hill paddock where all of the ewes were. When they arrived they knew it was bad. The fire had obviously been extra intense when it got there. The fences were razed. Trees had not just been burnt but many were just blackened sticks still smoking. The paddock was rough and travelling over it was time consuming and difficult at the best of times. Slowly Diana and Jason started searching the paddock for what they knew would be an awful sight of burnt carcasses. After three hours of searching, both Diana and Jason were confused. No carcasses. Was the fire so intense that it had incinerated 2500 ewes into nothing? Maybe some carcasses where the fire was super intense - but all 2500??
Gradually Diana and Jason started searching neighbouring paddocks, further and further afield until the impossible happened. Four kilometres away in a very dusty, dry paddock with no feed, and of course, no fuel for a fire to burn, stood 2500 ewes, very much alive and very much concerned about the lack of feed. Diana and Jason were speechless and kept checking that those were indeed their ewes. Well they sure were.
Who was the Queensland bloke? The hill paddock where the sheep had been originally is very rough. Riding a bike over it is nearly impossible in normal circumstances, even for a rider who knows the paddock. Locals all agree that the Queenslander must have been a crack bike rider. To move those ewes on your own, without the help of dogs, is unbelievable. Rumour has it now, as the bush telegraph works overtime, that a dog was seen on the back of a Queensland ute, by someone on that day in that area passing through. To have the fire knowledge and know what to look for in terms of a safe haven for 2500 eyes must be a skill owned by few. To be driving along the road, look in, and recognize an emergency and know what to do and then do it!! That’s the stuff of bush ballads if you ask me. So what a great story. And what is better, is it is all true.
Other true statistics on the Goobang State Forrest Fire include:
∑ 20,000 hectares of farmland were burnt out that day and night
∑ No houses were lost thanks largely to the efforts of the Bush Fire brigades
∑ 5500 sheep were lost to the fire
∑ 300 cattle died
∑ Diana and Jason lost about 300 weaner lambs, less than more local farmers
And so what happens to these devastated farmers? Well, in the bush, community support is pretty amazing. For instance, in the middle of January, the Mudgee Landcare group went over to the Yeovil bushfire area and voluntarily started rebuilding fences. Steel posts (thousands and thousands of them) have been donated by the Tullamore (I think that is right) Landcare group.
Fodder for livestock has been donated by other farms, and, of course, there has been considerable government funding made available as well. Australians in general do seem to perform magnificently in times of adversity.
I think we all need to occasionally take a moment out of our busy schedules, to privately say thanks to all those unsung heroes out there who know what they can do, and then just do it. And to thaat Queensland bloke out there, who can ride a motorbike through hell and back, who could accurately assess a dangerous situation and then operate very effectively under great risk and pressure, and who obviously felt a responsibility as an Australian to other Australians, thank you . You would have made a dazzling Gold Medal Event rider in another time and another place.
Cheers,Heath

Return to the top of the page

HOME