There have been lots of bushfires in NSW recently, including one which could have come right up to our house.  Fortunately it did not, and the danger is now largely passed.

In fact we are well-prepared, with a system set up with a pump to spread water through a sprinkling system all over the house.  We have worked out what to take if the fires really require an evacuation, and we have put shutters over the more exposed windows.  The pump would be set going and left going after we drove away.

Firemen in the back garden doing the “hazard reduction burn”

Four days ago the wind was strong, and could have blown the fire in our direction.  Since then there has been relatively little wind, and the local fire service has undertaken a “hazard reduction burn”, which means they set a fire going, with lots of firemen around to control it.  They have largely burned away the undergrowth and leaf-litter around our valley (the valley behind our house).

Fire below our pool area

This will greatly reduce the likelihood of a wildfire reaching our house, so it is really good news.

Fire (deliberate) in our neighbour’s back garden

These images were taken on the day of the “controlled” (!) burn, and the day after, to show the effects.

Burning log in back garden towards the end of the “controlled” burn

David talking to the Al-Jazeera reporter and camera-man, in our back garden

Sue and I were approached by a reporter/presenter from Al-Jazeera – the 24-hour news channel run from the UAE.  Sue gave a “live feed” intereview, and they recorded a short segment for a later broadcast.  It’s on their site, so here is the link: …………………………………………………..
http://link.brightcove.com/services/player/bcpid1659202292001?bckey=AQ~~,AAAAmtVJIFk~,TVGOQ5ZTwJbsT0Mq3k9H8GCa4jV3vL4M&bclid=0&bctid=2753736595001

The two people in the “crew” spent several hours on their Apple Mac-Books at our dining table after taking the film, editing it all to make just a 2 min. “clip”.

After the controlled burn

This picture shows the area of bush just below our garden the following day.

The area of bushland looks devastated, but it isn’t as bad as after a spontaneous bushfire, because the trees above about 3m aren’t burned.