The Christmas break has been anything but worry-free and restful for the CFA brigades and communities living in the shadows of the Grampians bushfire.
While temperatures pushed past the low 30s in the Grampians town of Halls Gap by mid-afternoon on Christmas Day, emergency services and residents in fire-affected parts of western Victoria were bracing for the hotter and more severe forecasts for Boxing Day.
The Ararat CFA crew have embraced Christmas cheer but are prepared to swing into action if necessary. From left: Alex Pickett, Ashley Turnhand, Humper Humphrey, Leigh Dwyer and Nathan Bendelle.Credit: Justin McManus
The Grampians fire had already burned more than 44,000 hectares by Christmas Day as residents in surrounding towns nervously prepared for the conditions or made plans to leave.
Ararat CFA firefighter Nathan Bendelle kept his phone and pager handy, ready to abandon his lunch plans as conditions worsened on Christmas Day.
While he had hoped for some quiet family time, Bendelle said turning out to fight fires was a part of summer life in his community.
“I’ve been doing this for 25 years. It’s just another day for some of us,” he said. “You get used to it. It’s a normal part of life.”
Bendelle’s wife is also involved in the CFA and works in administration. In the days before Christmas, Bendelle had been doing patrols in Halls Gap, which was evacuated due to the fire risk.
The Grampians fire. Credit: Justin McManus
He was ready to rush out to the fires at short notice but said the hot and windy conditions on Thursday posed a greater risk.
“Boxing Day is more the worry.”
In Pomonal, Anthi Emmanouil-Playne and her partner, Bill Playne, packed to leave on Christmas Eve and spent Wednesday with family in Melbourne.
The couple lost their house in February when a bushfire burnt 45 homes in the town beneath the Grampians, and they have been in another house while they rebuild. They have been living in the town for just two years.
By Wednesday afternoon, property owners in some parts of Pomonal were told to evacuate immediately.
Emmanouil-Playne, who works in the region as a counsellor, said they had chosen to leave the day before, on Christmas Eve, because it was better for their mental health with a large fire burning nearby.
Anthi Emmanouil-Playne and Bill Playne, with dog Remi, pack up their car to leave Pomonal on Christmas Eve.Credit: Justin McManus
“I want to be in the best mental shape that I can be, so I can support others,” she said. “I’d prefer to stay away and then come back well enough to serve my community. Everyone is going to do that in different ways.”
Ararat CFA captain Ash Turnham spent Christmas Day in Melbourne but was not planning to stay overnight, because of the extreme conditions forecast for Thursday.
He said local crews were called to one small local fire while a strike team from Ararat was sent to the Grampians fire.
“We’ve prepared as much as we can,” he said.
Turnham spent Christmas Eve making preparations with the crew, while his wife was out doing peer support work for the CFA.
“For us, it’s not much of a Christmas Eve,” he said. “As captain you never switch off.”
A community meeting in Moyston on Tuesday. Credit: Justin McManus
Although Ararat is not directly affected by the Grampians fire, Turnham said his crews had been supporting neighbouring brigades in fighting the blaze over the past week or so.
On Tuesday, emergency services told a community meeting in the town of Moyston that under a worst-case scenario the Grampians fire could expand markedly – particularly after a forecast change in wind direction on Thursday.
If that scenario does eventuate, emergency services say the fire could reach surrounding towns including Dunkeld, Pomonal and Willaura.
CFA chief officer Jason Heffernan urged people in areas at risk of fire to leave early if they were at all uncertain about their fire plan. “Just go,” he said. “If you’re not sure, play it safe. Your life is not worth the gamble.”
Country Fire Authority chief Jason Heffernan urged people to leave early if they were at all unsure about their fire plan. Credit: Nine News
Heffernan said firefighters could better focus on battling bushfires and trying to save properties when they knew people had already left their homes. Residents staying behind to fight a fire could quickly become overwhelmed, and people had described the noise of a bushfire as being like a freight train bearing down on them, he said.
“The sky goes black. The noise then comes along. Quite often power is lost. If you’re on tank water and relying on electricity, all of a sudden, you’ve lost your water.”
Heffernan also urged families to have a designated driver who was not drinking alcohol if they were in bushfire-prone areas during Christmas so they could leave quickly if necessary.
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