The Firies!

We have a very dedicated group of Rural Fire Service Volunteers who are members of the Shipley Plateau Branch. They have kindly come out to assist us with the task of burning off a large pile of bush vegetation that had been building up over the past couple of years as we manage the build up close to the house.

I am very reticent to burn it off on my own because I do live in an extreme fire zone. I know from past episodes that a lot can go wrong if you're not sure of what you're doing. Better to be safe than sorry. I think they enjoyed the training exercise and it gave some of the new recruits a chance to learn more about the behaviour of fires.

The least CCN and I could do was to make them hot cups of tea and coffee and feed them up on Tim Tams and Monte Carlo biscuits.

Twelve years ago a fire swept through my property and devastated the bush. It is nothing short of amazing how much the bush has grown back since the fire. We are constantly keeping it thinned out around the house, but in doing that we create the other problem, what to do with the vegetation that we do prune back.

During the fire twelve years ago I saw first hand the fantastic skills that the "Firies" have developed in dealing with bush fires. I'm sure they were the major reason my house came out unscathed even though everything else around it was burnt to a cinder. We can't thank them enough for continuing to look after us and to give us a hand when needed.

They're a great bunch of people and many of them are people we know as friends and colleagues. They give up a lot to keep us safe.