[SOC] Re: Bushfires

[Ian C. Purdie]

paule@sfu.ca wrote:

> p.s. the Fire and related issues are being reported here in B.C...
> maybe it is a commonwealth thing???

Most likely Paul.

Today doesn't look promising at all for Canberra. Ground temps 35C, low
humidity, high winds.

I got to see film footage last night and absolutely nothing could have stopped
it.

I know the area very well on a street by street basis, my son having lived
there. The pine plantation [where the fire came from] has a break of around 500
metres to a four lane freeway, separated by another 250 metre nature strip with
some small trees and shrubs, then another dual road, then houses.

How it leapt all that is totally unbelievable. Some say fireballs just rained
down and houses exploded in flames one after another. Now four dead and possibly
more expected. Over 200 people in hospital. Even fire stations burned down.

I thought nothing would surprise me anymore, it has.

I copied some street directory pages from the internet. On this one below, the
red "X" indicates roughly where my son's house was. The suburb Duffey to the
left has virtually vanished. Most of Holder as well. From what I can gather,
most of the upper/left 75% of this jpg has gone up in smoke.

Cotter Rd. is the freeway.

http://my.integritynet.com.au/purdic/temp/holder.jpg - 30K

The next map is more or less a zoom in. Again, Mike's old house is the red "X".
I think everything on this map has gone.

http://my.integritynet.com.au/purdic/temp/zeal.jpg - 35K

Terribly, terribly sad. Perhaps worse to come.


72/73's

Ian C. Purdie
Budgewoi N.S.W. Australia - Co-ords S33�14', E151�34'
VK2TIP "I'll give ya the TIP mate" QRP-L #1978. SOC #171 FP#91
http://www.electronics-tutorials.com/