Rob Mitchell (McEwen, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) notes that Tuesday, 7 February 2023 marked 14 years since the Victorian Black Saturday Bushfires that saw:

(a) 173 lives lost;

(b) 414 injuries; and

(c) over 3,500 structures destroyed, including over 2,000 homes;

(2) thanks the:

(a) brave men and women of the respective emergency service organisations for their brave work on that day, fighting around 400 individual fires; and

(b) dedicated volunteers who came to the aid of the devastated communities; and

(3) remembers the people who lost their lives on that day and those who we have lost since then.

I rise to introduce this motion and to acknowledge and remember the 14th anniversary of the Black Saturday bushfires. On the morning of 7 February 2009, the state of Victoria woke up to a hot and windy day. Some saw it as a perfect time to do their washing; others thought it was a good idea to do some gardening, which was not the best case.

However, the perfect day for fire conditions was just that: an exceptionally hot and dry week, coupled with being in the middle of a drought. During this time, Premier Brumby was scoffed at for his calls to be prepared and for acknowledging that this was going to be a very, very tough day. What we didn't know was that it was a day that would go on where 173 people would lose their lives and 414 people would be injured. It was a day when we lost 35 children and 16 became orphans. It was a day when up to a million animals died. It was a day when 450,000 hectares across the state were burnt, taking with them 3,500 buildings—including more than 2,000 homes. It was a day that scarred communities, and the lives and memories of all those Victorians.

The fires that spread throughout Victoria were ferocious and devastating; some were started by electrical faults and others by lightning. But a few were started by arson. The most devastating fire was the Kilmore East fire, which burnt through Wandong and reached all the way to Kinglake, Broadford, Healesville and Toolangi. This fire, thanks to winds which drove the fire up to 200 kilometres per hour, spread up to 40 kilometres away and claimed the lives of 119 people.

It was a day that turned out with us losing friends, neighbours and people we just knew in the community. I think of my friend Reg Evans, who always used to be at the St Andrews market. Whenever you walked in there he would say, 'That's why, boy, we go round and take it.' It has never been the same to go back to that market without having Reg there to give you a push along and make sure that every person put the Labor flyers onto their stalls.

In the wake of this loss and devastation, our community stood up and helped. Over a thousand CFA volunteers were there, and other firefighters, who served their communities and fought the fire. This was a fire like no other. There had been scenes up in Coleraine, where the leaves on the trees had frozen in the direction that the fire went. Fire jumped from house to house—in some areas 50 metres apart, ignoring the bush in the middle and just jumping where the oxygen was available on a cleared house block. It taught our volunteers and our fire departments how to redo bushfires, because they had never seen a fire of such intensity and destruction before.

We will never know the full cost of what actually happened. In fact, it took until 19 March 2009 for the last, final fire to be extinguished. Our volunteers and firies worked tirelessly to bring these fires under control, putting themselves in danger to protect others. To this day, we are endlessly thankful for what they did.

I'm also thankful to all the other volunteers who supported the firefighters and everyone else in the clean-up and rebuilding efforts, from the pubs that stayed open to make sure all those volunteers got a feed to the people who helped go through the wreckage and clean up, and everyone in between. Those who gave up their time to support our community—I remain thankful for them every single day. They showed true grit—true Australian grit—and determination. It was the definition of mateship, to stand up and give others a hand when they need it. It's the kind of stuff that should inspire us as a nation.

When we remember the Black Saturday bushfires, it's important to continue to acknowledge the ongoing ramifications that these natural disasters can have on a community. The physical scars can still be seen today, burnt into the landscape, and I believe it's a good metaphor for how this disaster still lingers in the minds and hearts of all of us affected in those areas. I want to acknowledge Christine Nixon. Christine was pilloried from pillar to post for her work, but she was there every day. Every single community event, no matter what, day or night, she was there listening. It takes someone with immense strength to be able to do that. Day in, day out, she turned up and helped, and she should be recognised for the great work she did, along with her former colleague in the state parliament Ben Hardman. Ben was someone who was there. He knew a lot of people who perished, but he was there every single day and helped us out. Cameron Caine, a former Liberal candidate for the seat of McEwen in 2010, was a local policeman at the time, and he saw the devastation and what happened in Kinglake. It's taken a toll on him. He's still a good mate of mine, and I still pick on him because he needs it, to keep him on his toes! But he was someone who stood up and fought, day in, day out, to help people. (Time expired)

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