Australian bushfires

jsmoke · 5 Jan 2020 at 08:29

Article about usefulness of in forest fires.

They say it's like spitting on a campfire but can buy a small amount of time in certain circumstances for fire crews to get in.

Another school of thought is that it's better to let the fires burn themselves out as it reduces future fuel for more fires.

https://priceonomics.com/does-using-airplanes-to-put-out-forest-fires/

wedrum · 5 Jan 2020 at 18:54

Devastating for the people losing their homes.
The risks the fire departments are doing is heroic.
But so heart breaking for the animals so sad.

Adam Challis · 5 Jan 2020 at 20:02

Hello Everyone,

Really terrible about what is going on, cannot stop thinking about it as I love animals and really want to help.

I am from the UK, does anyone know of anything that is set up to come over and help? I know people are thinking just donate money but I feel that is not enough.

Kind regards,
Adam

Adam Challis · 5 Jan 2020 at 20:21

Hello,

I would like someone to help find me a way to go over and help the animals in any way I can regarding the bush fires, I am from the UK. I know many of you will first suggest donating but I want to do more than that, donating just does not feel enough right now..

Does anyone know of anything set up for that? looking for people to help in any way they can.

Thank you for your time.

Kind regards,
Adam

Em3bbs · 5 Jan 2020 at 20:25

Edit: deleted as merged into a serious thread now

Threepwood · 5 Jan 2020 at 21:03

redflag

Yadda · 5 Jan 2020 at 21:09

Threepwood said:
redflag

It does have an air of the Easter Island tragedy about it, but with the over-worshipping of profit instead of gods (they chopped most of their trees down to move those huge statues around and it soon turned pretty hellish when the soil turned poor or blew away and the island's agriculture could no longer support the population).

[FnG]magnolia · 5 Jan 2020 at 22:05

jsmoke said:
This is what I have been saying yet I'm being called an idiot by people like mangolia. People blaming their PM as if something he can do about it.

That's not fair or true. I did not call you an idiot. The last sentence is what some of us are objecting to - your ignorance of the situation is understandable given the distances/relevance involved but your stance on what the most important person in the country could and should have done to protect his citizens is, to borrow Evangelion's word, obscene.

Chris Wilson · 5 Jan 2020 at 22:41

Nature at her angriest is hard to beat, no matter how angry her opponents, such massive scale fires are all but impossible to control, no matter who is PM or what monetary aid is offered, this terrible tragedy is testimony to how impotent man still is against such forces of nature as wildfires in forested or even moorland areas, tsunamis, volcanoes and earthquakes. Mankind is clever and resourceful, but what the hell can be done against such an opponent? I guess one can only pray for rain, and a lack of wind, but such massive fires generate their own air movements. One can only look on in terrible awe and with a heavy heart for those so shockingly affected.

NVP · 6 Jan 2020 at 07:32

el_dazza · 6 Jan 2020 at 08:20

That one's doing the rounds on social media, claims it's taken from the ISS but doesn't appear to be.

I can't imagine what it must be like over there. Looking at the NSW fire map, it's extremely chilling to read on some fires 'it is now too late to leave'

Sankari · 6 Jan 2020 at 09:15

Threepwood said:
Could sea water be used to create a break in the fire in places? I know salt is not good for the ground but maybe worth it in some of these cases? Lesser of evils etc?

Or is it all just too massive now? With no gaurentee that other fires might not start on the other sides?

Awful.

The biggest question is how you'd get it there. When you're talking about the inland areas, that's a long way to ferry water. Fresh stuff from local sources is quickest. And yes, the salt would completely screw up the topsoil, which is already a nationwide problem in Australia, so we don't want to make it any worse.

NVP said:

This is a NASA composite image (not a photo from the ISS) showing all areas hit by the fires between 05.12.19-05.01.20. So when you look at it, keep in mind that most of these fires are out; they are not current.

Sankari · 6 Jan 2020 at 09:27

This is what our volunteer firies are tackling right now:

NVP · 6 Jan 2020 at 09:27

It's like "God" doesn't want you guys to have a country anymore... did you legalise gay marriage recently?

Sankari · 6 Jan 2020 at 09:31

This infographic shows how Australia's largest fires are now creating their own local weather systems, complete with lightning that ignites even more fires.

NVP said:
It's like "God" doesn't want you guys to have a country anymore... did you legalise gay marriage recently?

You know... I think that's what probably tipped Him over the edge.

Semple · 6 Jan 2020 at 10:18

I recall someone saying much earlier on in the thread, but it just seems amazing how little the Australian government seem to be willing to do to try and prevent these bushfires long term. If these fires continue to get significantly worse every summer, it'll eventually make large swathes of Australia uninhabitable. With how large the land mass is in Australia, it'll probably be the equivalent of somewhere like Switzerland becoming uninhabitable. So for a government to have so little interest in Australias future seems absolutely shocking.

I can only hope that the majority of Australians don't forget about these events whenever your next general election comes round.

Adam Challis said:
Hello,

I would like someone to help find me a way to go over and help the animals in any way I can regarding the bush fires, I am from the UK. I know many of you will first suggest donating but I want to do more than that, donating just does not feel enough right now..

Does anyone know of anything set up for that? looking for people to help in any way they can.

Thank you for your time.

Kind regards,
Adam

I'd suspect unless you've got the money to travel over yourself as well as paying for your own accommodation etc, then your only way of helping would be donating. None of the charities over there helping animals will be spending money on ferrying volunteers over from half way across the world.

Sankari · 6 Jan 2020 at 10:41

Semple said:
I recall someone saying much earlier on in the thread, but it just seems amazing how little the Australian government seem to be willing to do to try and prevent these bushfires long term. If these fires continue to get significantly worse every summer, it'll eventually make large swathes of Australia uninhabitable. With how large the land mass is in Australia, it'll probably be the equivalent of somewhere like Switzerland becoming uninhabitable. So for a government to have so little interest in Australias future seems absolutely shocking.

We've had a conservative government for 8 years, and they're in bed with the fossil fuel industry, so... yeah. That explains a lot.

Here's our current PM two years ago (before he was PM) answering a Dorothy Dixer while using a lump of coal as a prop:

The conservative party line is 'Coal is good because we sell it and make money.' They're not interested in the environment. They're not even smart enough to build nuclear power plants, which are far superior to coal, and cleaner too.

GGizmo · 6 Jan 2020 at 13:15

It seems like a lot of fires have been started deliberately.

Dozens of firebugs blamed for destructive Queensland fires
https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/na...ructive-queensland-fires-20191220-p53m1i.html

As firefighters remained on high alert, police revealed 103 of the destructive fires that had lashed Queensland since September were deliberately lit.

Figures obtained by AAP revealed police had dealt with 98 people - 31 adults and 67 juveniles - for deliberately setting fires.

StriderX · 6 Jan 2020 at 15:50

Convenient for the idiot PM, he can now just blame it all on them and no longer take any responsibility.

Sankari · 7 Jan 2020 at 10:58

Don't know if it's been addressed in this thread already, but just in case...

There's an idiotic article by Paul Joseph Watson floating around the usual fringes of internet lunacy *cough*SummitNews*cough* which claims that Australian police have arrested 200 for arson. Watson uses this claim as a springboard to further assert that this proves climate change is not to blame for the bushfires or the conditions that caused them to take hold so quickly.

As you'd expect, Watson is lying. Police have not arrested nearly 200 people for starting fires, they have only arrested 24. The other people face legal action for negligence and failing to respect total fire bans, not for starting bushfires.

BowdonUK said:
It seems like a lot of fires have been started deliberately.

Dozens of firebugs blamed for destructive Queensland fires
https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/na...ructive-queensland-fires-20191220-p53m1i.html

Only 24 confirmed as arson, out of ~150 fires nationwide.