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Taking Notes for Research in Elementary School

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Read some of the facts and discuss some of the problems

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The McArthur Forest Fire Danger Index records fire weather conditions in Australia. The levels for Black Saturday were higher than the conditions experienced on both the 'Black Friday' event in 1939 and the notorious 'Ash Wednesday' event in 1983. In the wake of the fires and the casualty toll, policies for dealing with bush-fires and management practices needed revision.

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Inside the 2009 Black Saturday Bushfires

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Bushfires in Victoria - Monday Sunrise Broadcast

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A tragedy beyond belief, beyond precedent and beyond words ... one of the darkest days in Australia's peacetime history.

Fire in Australia

Fire has been an elemental part of the Australian environment for as long as the continent has existed. Much of the vegetation in Australia has evolved to survive, thrive in and even promote frequent exposure to fire. The seeds of many native species require smoke or intense heat to germinate.

In southern Australia, hot, dry summers and bush dominated by oil-bearing eucalypts create an ongoing bushfire hazard.

Fire in Aboriginal Australia

Aboriginal people have used fire as a complex land-management tool for tens of thousands of years. Across country they adapt the heat and intensity of fire to individual environments to burn off grass and bush, to keep trails clear, promote new growth that will attract kangaroos and other prey, and to drive animals towards waiting hunters.

Over many millennia, these controlled burns have altered the continent's environment, favouring the survival and spread of fire-resistant plant species and creating open grassy woodlands. Frequent burning reduced the fuel load of dead leaves, branches and grass, and lessened each fire's intensity.

From 1788, those fire practices began to change. European settlers, who were afraid of bushfires, brought their own ways of using fire.

At first they used fire to clear land but as they put up fences and buildings, raised crops and increased their herds, uncontrolled burning became a threat to life and property.

The first bushfires in the colony were reported in 1797. As Aboriginal people were driven off their land, their regime of low-intensity fire management went with them, and bushfires became more prevalent. From then, the government sought to limit Aboriginal and settler use of fire as an agricultural tool.

Duke of Portland (Home Secretary) to Governor Hunter, 1798

To remedy so alarming an evil it will be proper to oblige all persons holding farms adjoining waste and uncultivated land to keep plowed up so much ... as shall be adjudged sufficient to stop the progress of the fire.

Urban Australia and fire

As Australia became more urbanised, the fringes of cities encroached farther into the bush and it is here in the frontier zone between bush and city that bushfires do much of their damage. Devastating, large-scale fires have increased in size and frequency over the past 200 years.

It was in this edge environment that the Black Saturday bushfires inflicted the damage that made them the most destructive in Australian history.

Days before Black Saturday

A heatwave struck south-eastern Australia in the weeks before 7 February 2009, building on two months of hot, dry conditions. Melbourne endured three days above 43 degrees and the temperature peaked on 30 January at 45.1 degrees, one of the hottest days ever recorded in the city. These temperatures combined with extremely low levels of humidity to create tinder-dry conditions in the Victorian bush.

On 6 February, Premier John Brumby issued a public warning that the next day was expected to be the 'worst day [for fire conditions] in the history of the state'.

Black Saturday

On the morning of 7 February northwesterly winds in excess of 100 kilometres per hour scoured the state, bringing hot, dry air from Central Australia. The storm helped create almost perfect fire conditions and when the winds brought down powerlines around 11.30am in the Kinglake/Whittlesea area, the resulting sparks ignited the Kilmore East fire.

As the day progressed, the size and intensity of the fire increased. In the evening a cool change from the south-west lowered temperatures but raised wind speeds again to more than 100 kilometres per hour. Spot fires, ignited by embers blown ahead of the main blaze, were reported up to 35 kilometres from the fire front.

Other fires began across the state in Horsham, Beechworth, Bendigo and Marysville. By evening almost 400 individual fires were burning and Victoria Police had announced the first fatalities.

The weeks after

The following day, 8 February, the Kilmore East fire and the Murrindindi Mill fire around Marysville merged to create the massive Kinglake fire complex. Hot, dry conditions continued and despite the concerted efforts of more than 19,000 Country Fire Authority members, the fires continued to blaze.

It would take weeks before weather changes, reduction of fuel loads and human intervention extinguished the fires.

Consequences

The Black Saturday bushfires killed 173 people, 120 in the Kinglake area alone. Another 414 people were injured. More than 450,000 hectares had burned and 3,500 buildings including more than 2000 houses destroyed. The RSPCA estimated that up to one million wild and domesticated animals died in the disaster.

The Black Saturday bushfires were the most devastating in Australian history.

Aftermath

The impact of the bushfires was so overwhelming that Premier Brumby announced a royal commission into the fires on 13 February 2009, even before the full extent of the disaster was known.

The commission investigated 'all aspects of the government's bushfire strategy' and included among its 67 recommendations that the Victorian government revise its advice around preparation for bushfires along with its bushfire education policies, and that it modify building codes, including banning the construction of homes in high-risk areas.

Class action lawsuits initiated in the Supreme Court of Victoria against electricity distribution company SP Ausnet eventually led to a $494 million settlement in relation to the Kinglake fire and a $300 million out-of-court settlement in relation to the Marysville fire. At the time these sums were the largest class action settlements in Australian history.

Victoria Police investigated the cause of the fires and charged one man with arson in connection with the Churchill fires near Morwell. They also charged two youths with arson in connection with the Bendigo blaze. However, Supreme Court Justice Paul Coghlan found the two youths were unfit to stand trial because of their intellectual disabilities.

Personal cost

The lasting damage of the Black Saturday bushfires has been the personal cost to individuals, families and communities.

Loss of life and injury to family and friends, loss of homes and the memories they contained, the complete alteration of familiar landscapes and the sense of foreboding that such a disaster could happen again have affected people across the fire-ravaged region.

Doctors and psychologists have reported a rise in suicides among bushfire survivors along with alcohol and drug abuse and addictive behaviour such as gambling.

Further reading
The Victorian Bushfires Collection on the Recollections magazine website Fire in Australia - Years 9-12 learning resource on the National Museum of Australia website
Geoffrey Cary, David Lindenmayer and Stephen Dovers, Australia Burning: fire ecology, policy and management issues, CSIRO publishing, Canberra, 2003.

Peter Clack, Firestorm: Trial by Fire, John Wiley and Sons, Milton, Queensland, 2003.

Related Defining Moments

1864: The Great Fire of Brisbane

1974: Brisbane floods

2003: Canberra bushfires

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'Black Saturday' bushfires kill 173 people in Victoria

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A tragedy beyond belief, beyond precedent and beyond words ... one of the darkest days in Australia's peacetime history. Fire has been an elemental part of the Australian environment for as long as the continent has existed. Much of the vegetation in Australia has evolved to survive, thrive in and even promote frequent exposure to fire.

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Bailey Ranatunga

Where were you that day that the fire broke out and what was your immediate reaction?

I can't remember the exact day that it broke out but I do remember we were at school in Belgrave and a fire came over from Ferntree Gully and the school went into lock-down and all the roads to get to our school was blocked off so mum and dad couldn't get to me. I remember looking out the window and seeing the flames over the trees and absolutely freaking out.

How were you/your family/communities affected by these fires?

My communities were effected very bad because I lived in Avonsleigh and there were fires in every direction so we couldnt get out. Ever since then I have always had a massive fear of bush fires and once they were over I remember every where I went all I could see was black.

Do you think the government response was adequate and/or effective?

I think it was the ...

Carina Harkin

I had a house in Flowerdale that survived the fires. Problem was it RAINED for £ WEEKS SOLID before the fires! it was SO unexpectedly cold that Christmas we were buying beanies and getting coats from charity shops, when it should have been 35 degrees Celsius. The problem was then came dry heat...which to dried out all the new growth which became a tinder box waiting for the loony to light the match. obviously everything is multi factorial bit be very clear the Rain contributed to these fires

Terry and Angela

We survived by the grace of God. We do have a story to tell also in great detail and photos. We have lived with this for 7 years and it will never leave us ever.

Ashley Geelan

Where were you that day that the fire broke out and what was your immediate reaction?
In Kinglake township. Fought the fires in Kinglake township area.

How were you/your family/communities affected by these fires?
Father lost his home. Lost friends.

Do the effects of that event still linger on after all these years?
Suffer from PTSD today.

Do you think the governement response was adequate and/or effective?
No.

Is there anything that could have been done by the government/the local offices to prevent this tragic event?
Yes. Back-burning. Better communications.

Do you personally believe that climate change has something to do with the eruption of bush fires, rising heat waves and rising sea levels?
Yes.

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Where were you that day that the fire broke out and what was your immediate reaction? I can't remember the exact day that it broke out but I do remember we were at school in Belgrave and a fire came over from Ferntree Gully and the school went into lock-down and all the roads to get to our school was blocked off so mum and dad couldn't get to me.

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"It's just horrific," said Neil Morgan, president of the Statewide Wildlife Rescue Emergency Service in Victoria. "It's disaster all around for humans and animals as well."

Hundreds of burned, stressed and dehydrated animals, including kangaroos, koalas, possums, lizards and birds, have already arrived at shelters across the scorched region. Rescuers have doled out antibiotics, pain relievers and fluids in a bid to keep them comfortable, but some of the severely injured were euthanized to spare any more suffering. Others face months of painful rehabilitation.

In some of the hardest-hit areas, rescuers used vaporizing tents to help creatures whose lungs were burned by the searing heat and smoke.

John Rowdon, president of Wildlife Victoria, said one joey had been found with "crispy fried ears".

"[He] stuck his head out of his mum's pouch and lost all his whiskers and cooked up his nose," he said. "They're the ones your hearts really go out to."

A koala, nicknamed "Sam" by her rescuers, has become an international star after she was found moving gingerly on scorched paws by a fire patrol. A video posted on the internet shows firefighter David Tree offering the animal a bottle of water, which she eagerly accepts, holding Mr Tree's hand as he pours water into her mouth.

Coleen Wood, manager of the Mountain Ash Wildlife Shelter, said the plight of one turtle illustrated just how ferocious the fires were.

"We had a turtle come through that was just about melted still alive," she said. "The whole thing was just fused together it was just horrendous. It just goes to show how intense (the fire) was in the area."

Volunteers from the animal welfare group Victorian Advocates for Animals filled 10 giant bins with 2,300 dead grey-headed flying foxes that succumbed to heat stroke Saturday, said Lawrence Pope, the group's president. Volunteers tried to save some of the bats by giving them fluids and keeping them cool, he said, but the creatures were simply too stressed and perished.

"It's heartbreaking. They're very endearing animals and to see them die right before our eyes is something that wildlife rescuers and carers just find appalling."

Hundreds of domestic animals have also been killed and injured by the fires. RSPCA centres have been set up in the towns of Kinglake, Yea and Marysville to treat pets affected by the blazes.

The official human death toll stood at 181 from weekend's deadly fires and authorities said it would exceed 200. While the scope of the wildlife devastation was still unclear, it was likely to be enormous, Mr Rowdon said.

Residents in Kinglake were also desperate for animal feed for birds, horses and sheep.

Maria Mercurio, chief executive of RSPCA Victoria, said the full extent of the suffering was still becoming clear. RSPCA vets were working around the clock to save animals, but some horses and sheep would only start displaying symptoms of smoke inhalation in the coming days, she said.

"They will have difficulty breathing and swallowing and respiratory problems which are indicative of burns in the lungs and throat."

Several dogs and cats had been found by rescue teams hiding under burned out houses, however the fate of many of their owners was still unclear, she said.

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Australian bush fires: Millions of animals feared dead

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"It's just horrific," said Neil Morgan, president of the Statewide Wildlife Rescue Emergency Service in Victoria. "It's disaster all around for humans and animals as well." Hundreds of burned, stressed and dehydrated animals, including kangaroos, koalas, possums, lizards and birds, have already arrived at shelters across the scorched region.

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As the Victorian bushfire threat abates and residents start to piece together shattered lives, wildlife authorities are beginning to assess the toll on fauna.

There are fears endangered species were among the many native animals killed in the inferno. One of them, the leadbeater's possum, may have been wiped out for good, Wildlife Victoria said.

A Department of Sustainability and Environment spokeswoman said fires still burning in the state at the time of writing made an official wildlife toll impossible.

The spokeswoman did not directly comment on the status of the possum, which is Victoria's animal emblem.

But Wildlife Victoria chief executive Sandy Fernee estimated that "millions" of animals had perished in the 302,875 hectares burnt.

Temporary foster care for pets
The RSPCA does not have official figures of the number of pets killed in the fires, but estimates the figure to be in the hundreds.

Pet owners who rescued their furry friends have struggled to keep them content in tent-cities while they get back on their feet themselves.

One organisation, Fun4Paws, is offering these families a solution in the form of foster care for pets.

"We are getting the people from the fire areas that are unable to maintain their pet because of their situation ... so we try and place their pet ... with a foster carer," said Luke Williams, founder of the not-for-profit organisation.

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Millions of animals died in fires: Wildlife Victoria

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As the Victorian bushfire threat abates and residents start to piece together shattered lives, wildlife authorities are beginning to assess the toll on fauna. There are fears endangered species were among the many native animals killed in the inferno. One of them, the leadbeater's possum, may have been wiped out for good, Wildlife Victoria said.

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Horrific! Bush Fire Destruction in Australia - Australia with Simon Reeve - BBC

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- Last week, during a heat wave in the southern part of the country, Australian officials issued for the first time a "catastrophic"-level fire warning. The "catastrophic" level, which indicates that people should evacuate, was created after bushfires in the state of Victoria in February 2009 killed 173 people. The following report on the 2009 Victoria bushfires will be published in the forthcoming Britannica Book of the Year 2010.

- The human and property costs of the disaster were enormous, but Australian wildlife experts have also estimated that possibly a million or more animals may have died as well, including those living in the wild and at four wildlife sanctuaries that were destroyed in the fire.

n Feb. 7, 2009, a day that was dubbed "Black Saturday" in Australia, deadly bushfires swept through the southern state of Victoria, leaving 173 people dead and 500 injured. In addition, more than 2,000 homes were destroyed, and experts estimated that the number of affected wildlife (killed or injured) could climb well into the millions.

With its abundant forests and hot dry climate, Australia had often suffered from deadly bushfires, most notably the 1939 "Black Friday" blaze in Victoria, in which 71 people were killed, and the 1983 "Ash Wednesday" fires in Victoria and South Australia, where 75 people perished. The scale of the recent fires-attributed to extreme weather conditions coupled with a severe and protracted drought that had created tinder-dry vegetation across the state-was unprecedented and left the country in a state of shock.

On February 7, Victorians were told to brace for the "worst day" in the state's history; weather forecasters warned of a record heat wave with temperatures soaring to 46.4 °C (115.5 °F), combined with gale-force winds of up to 90 km/hr (56 mph). That day more than 47 major fires erupted across the state, 14 of them claiming lives or causing significant damage. The most deadly conflagration, known as the Kilmore East fire, which claimed 121 lives, was sparked by a faulty power pole near the township of Kilmore East, 60 km (37 mi) north of Melbourne. The flames quickly jumped a major highway and roared into a forest where they turned into a giant fireball, dwarfing the resources of local firefighters who could only flee in its path. Aided by steep slopes and powerful winds, this fire raced through a series of townships, including Kinglake (where 38 people died), Strathewen (27 perished), and St. Andrews (12 were killed), catching residents by surprise and trapping many in their homes. Some sought to escape by car as the fires approached, but dozens died on the roads as they were overtaken by the fire, which leapt 100 m (328 ft) above the tree line and was powerful enough to kill with radiant heat from 300 m (984 ft).

Late in the afternoon a sudden change in wind direction pushed the fire to the northeast, bringing new towns into its path. A parallel fire, known as the Murrindindi fire, also blew to the northeast, swallowing the unsuspecting tourist town of Marysville, where 34 people lost their lives. Fire experts said that these two fires alone released energy equivalent to 1,500 Hiroshima-sized atomic bombs.

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Fires also ravaged other parts of the state, including the eastern region of Gippsland, where 11 people were killed. In some townships there was no more than a handful of survivors after the fires swept through. The township of Flowerdale, 65 km (40 mi) north of Melbourne, was cut off from the world for almost 48 hours as its residents huddled in the local pub after their town was razed to the ground. A massive rescue effort was undertaken across the state with thousands of volunteers helping to shelter and provide for the survivors and the families of the victims.

The government immediately announced that a Royal Commission would be formed to look into the disaster but declared that the emergency services had done the best that they could in the face of an unprecedented natural phenomenon. When in August the Royal Commission released its 360-page interim report on the tragedy, however, it was highly critical of many aspects of Victoria's emergency service agencies. In particular, the report disclosed that the public warnings given by the Country Fire Authority (CFA) to the communities in the fire's path were inadequate and in some cases nonexistent. It revealed that the CFA personnel in charge of managing the fires failed to issue timely warnings, with the result that many people did not know that they were in danger until the fire was upon them. In addition, serious deficiencies were pinpointed in the command and control systems of the emergency services agencies, a problem that led to confusion, inertia, and poor decision making at crucial times. Among the 51 recommendations included in the report were changes to the "stay or go" policy that, before February 7, had advised residents to choose between remaining and defending their property against a fire or leaving the property early.

The report concluded that since 113 people died in their homes on Black Saturday, many homes could not be defended against a major bushfire, and it recommended that in future fires residents evacuate their homes rather than try to save them. The Victorian government pledged to implement all of the Royal Commission's interim recommendations in time for the beginning of the 2009-10 fire season. The Commission's final report, expected in July 2010, would evaluate longer-term issues, such as preventative burning and housing standards.

The emotional scars from Black Saturday continued to resonate; many affected families refused to rebuild their homes, saying that the risk of another fire was too great. The tragedy reminded Australians that the notion of living in the bush might still hold romantic appeal for many city dwellers, but it carried with it the very real and deadly threat of bushfire.

- Cameron Stewart

Images: A firefighter shares his water with an injured koala at Mirboo North after wildfires swept through the region on Monday, Feb. 9, 2009- Mark Pardew/AP; map of the 2009 Australian bushfires in Victoria, Australia- EB, Inc.

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The Australian "Black Saturday" Bushfires of 2009

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Last week, during a heat wave in the southern part of the country, Australian officials issued for the first time a "catastrophic"-level fire warning. The "catastrophic" level, which indicates that people should evacuate, was created after bushfires in the state of Victoria in February 2009 killed 173 people.

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How to Write a Research Paper for Kids - Episode 3: Researching