Firefighter boots lined up on stage tug at heartstrings
Six pairs of boots, representing the loss of six firefighters, were symbolically placed at the front of a state memorial service for bushfire victims in Sydney on Sunday. SEE THE PICTURES
NSW
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Walking hand-in-hand and sharing a teddy bear, Harvey Keaton and Charlotte O’Dwyer looked like any carefree toddlers on Sunday.
Their innocent play at a state memorial for 25 bushfire victims — including their brave fathers — underscored the enormous toll taken by the Black Summer fires.
The service moved from the images of toddlers who knew their fathers for a tragically short time to the heartbreak of Rural Fire Service boss Shane Fitzsimmons walking arm-in-arm with widow Megan McPaul, whose firefighter husband will never meet their baby due in May.
There were six pairs of boots placed symbolically at the front of the Qudos Bank arena on Sunday.
They recognised RFS firefighters, Horsley Park Deputy Captain Geoffrey Keaton, 32, Andrew O’Dwyer, 36, Samuel McPaul, 28. and aerial firefighters, Captain Ian McBeth, 45, First Officer Paul Hudson and Flight Engineer Rick DeMorgan Jnr, both 43.
Mr Fitzsimmons choked as he paid tribute to his six firefighters.
“They died as heroes,” he said.
“Lives were cut short and families have been changed forever.
“To the families and loved ones of those who have been lost and who are here today, we know your hearts have been broken over recent months and we are truly blessed you have made the effort to be here.
Each of the 19 civilians who died were recognised with the lighting of candles and the laying of wreaths of Australian native flowers.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison said he had come to reflect on a “Black Summer” that started in Spring and he said Australians had absorbed “unforgettable trauma”.
Premier Gladys Berejiklian said she could not comprehend the pain of grieving families and commended volunteers who risked their lives.
“Fatigued, traumatised and overwhelmed, they kept going back, day after day, week after week, and month after month,” she said.
“Volunteerism is indelibly marked into our Australian DNA but this summer, this took on a whole new meaning.”
Oak Flats Rural Fire Brigade guests Owen Pavey, David Heywood and Bill Seibrght said they were called to Tenterfield in September, and worked their way down to Nowra, finishing late in January.
“It’s very depressing, very sad,” Mr Seibrght said. “One day I called into Lake Conjola to fill up the water tanker, people were happy, but it was such a shock to go back the next day and find nothing. I cried,” he said.
“When the adrenaline has stopped and the fire season is over, it’s going to have a really big impact.”
Mr DeMorgan’s widow Rebekah, told The Daily Telegraph her husband, a pilot of 24 years who died on January 23 when his C-130 water bomber crashed at Peak View in southern NSW, loved his children Lucas, 13, and Logan, 10.
“He was charismatic, he would hit you with a sarcastic comment and was fun — everyone wanted to be around him,” she said. She said Australia was Rick’s first posting after starting a job with Coulson Aviation in December 2019.
“We spoke everyday when he was in Australia. Before he cranked the motors that day, we spoke,” she said.
“I was with him for pretty much half my life. Every day there is something that will trigger a memory.”
She said the memorial was a “grand gesture of love”.
“I can never thank Australia enough for reaching out to myself and my children in our darkest hour trying to walk us through this process,” she said.
The family leave for Florida on Tuesday, because they do not want to “overstay their welcome”.
“We’ve been loved on so hard by your country, if you ask us back, we’ll come,” Ms DeMorgan said.
Peak View RFS captain James Fitzgerald, who responded to the crash, said he was still affected.
“We smelt smoke and my father said a hell of a fire was coming up — we thought we’d contained it but it was a windy day,” he said.
“They turned up, did a few loops, dropped the retardant … and went up in a ball of flames. We all had a cry. You see these things on television, you don’t expect to see them in real life.”
Mr Fitzgerald’s wife Julie said the fires had been “incredibly difficult” for their family.
“The crash has certainly taken a toll on him, the fact that they were there helping us weighs heavily on his heart and mind,” she said.
“James goes to fires all the time, that’s what he does as a volunteer. He knows what he’s doing, but those men also knew what they were doing. That could have been any of us. What if our husbands don’t come home?”