Kyneton CFA volunteers remember Black Saturday as 10 year anniversary approaches
A decade on from some of the worst fires in Victorian history, the memory looms large for two Kyneton volunteers. At a time never to be forgotten, CFA members look back on one of the darkest days in Australian history.
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Ten years on from some of the worst fires in Victorian history, the memory looms large for two Kyneton volunteers.
While the Macedon Ranges escaped the Black Saturday blazes that took 173 lives, CFA brigades from across the shire offered practical support and assistance.
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Kyneton CFA volunteer Greg McIntyre was part of the crew that responded to fires in Redesdale, southeast of Bendigo, on February 7, 2009.
“While the fire was at its worst, you couldn’t do much but try to slow it down and try to protect people and properties,” he said.
The Redesdale fire threatened the town, burned about 7,000ha and destroyed 14 houses before it was contained on February 10.
Mr McIntyre said the crew had been waiting at their local fire station all morning before getting the midafternoon call.
After a false alarm in Pastoria, the brigade was called to the east side of Sidonia Rd, Baynton to try and stop the fire crossing the road.
“It outran us and got into a creek we couldn’t reach,” he said.
“It was remarkable in paddocks with almost no grass we were getting flame heights up to 2m. It was the worst I’d ever seen.”
Mr McIntyre said good leadership helped keep things calm among the volunteers. But the weeks after the fires proved tough.
“After I found out what happened in Kinglake, my mind tried to tell me the reason people died at Kinglake was because I didn’t do a good job at Sidonia,” he said.
Fires in the Kinglake area destroyed more than 1200 homes and killed 119 people.
“I had to do a lot of self talk to convince myself it wasn’t true,” he said.
“There was quite a strong emotional aftermath. It wasn’t unmanageable, but it did give me a lot of empathy for people who have post-traumatic stress.”
Fellow Kyneton brigade member Simon Hinneberg was part of the group that took over from Mr McIntyre in the late hours of February 7.
“I hope I never see it again. No one could do anything.” he said.
“It was a matter of getting a tanker and looking for the smoke and going for it.”
Mr Hinneberg said while the Black Saturday fires were an anomaly, he urged people to make sure their homes were prepared and a fire plan was in place each summer.
He also paid tribute to his fellow brigade members and other crews across the Macedon Ranges.
“We do work very well together. They’ve always been my second family. There’s something about going through certain situations together. They know exactly what you’ve been through,” he said.
Mr McIntyre said the experienced helped him gain perspective while training younger firefighters.
“It’s helped me, as a trainer of new firefighters, to really emphasise how to make good decisions that are based in facts not emotions,” he said.
“It’s a privilege to be a part of an emergency service, to work with great people and to be of some service of the community.”
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