BEVS

Queensland - State of Fire Emergency declared 9th November 2019.

Queensland government newsroom bulletin

New South Wales Fire and Rescue

Dreadful bush fire situations developing which seems to be early this season. I remember the one we had very close by here to us last year here in NZ, with all the evacuations & himself out with Civil Defence.

For all those of you in Queensland and NSW , I hope you are not close or if you are close, that you are safe and prepared.
To Polly in Queensland. Long tough hours no doubt. It is great work that you do within the disaster management team .
Brave, dangerous work for all the first and second responders and volunteers.

Here is hoping for rains & no gusty wind.

.

spouse of scouse

It's really bad BEVS. NSW has also declared a State of Emergency, including across the Sydney metropolitan area. It's the maximum level of bushfire warning, which is described as catastrophic.

The forecast for tomorrow's weather conditions is really bad. Above all, I hope there are no more deaths.

BEVS

Oh gawd yes. Sydney and surrounds ! Of course it is in another state entirely.
Thanks for highlighting. I will amend the thread title & my post.

spouse of scouse

It was good of you to write such a lovely post BEVS, and to acknowledge the work that Polly and her colleagues do Those poor firies, they must be exhausted. Such a dangerous job, bless them all.

Dreamy

We're packed and ready to go, if necessary.

2013 is still very fresh in our mind, so we won't be taking any chances.

spouse of scouse

I'll be keeping you in my thoughts Dreamy. Good on you for being prepared. Stay safe mate.

Shard

How's it going Aussies? Lots of news about the Sydney fires, anyone affected? Looks horrendous.

Kooky.

It's bad, Shard. Thread going here https://britishexpats.com/forum/aust...clared-929175/

Keeping my eye on Dreamy and nagging her frequently. I do have friends and work associates evacuated and with lost properties, don't need her to join them.

I'll land in Sydney on Saturday for nearly a month; thankfully my place is close to the city centre but I'll have my inhaler at hand.

Dreamy

I could tell when the British media reported on it with the deluge of calls from concerned relatives within seconds of each other!

We're in the Blue Mountains, which is basically 1 1/2 roads (with off-shoots) surrounded by bush. At the first sign of anything, we'll be off, especially if exit routes are threatened. If we didn't have a houseful of animals, we would have been off yesterday, but animals make logistics a little more interesting. So far, all good here. From what I can see from the Rural Fire Service "fires near me" site, Sydney as a whole is currently incident free.

It's still really bad up the NE coast of NSW/SE coast of QLD, so hopefully everyone there is able to stay safe.

Shard

Yes, hope everyone can be safe. Saw some satellite photos with very clear smoke plumes, so it must be massive. Hope there's no blocked up evacuation routes.

scrubbedexpat094

How's it going Dreamy? I hope that you're okay. Have checked in with a couple of mates in NSW today.
Stay safe all x

spouse of scouse

I don't know exactly where Dreamy is in the Blue Mountains, I wish I did because I've been checking the warnings. So many fires that are out of control, it's horrific. A link for people who know the location of mates in NSW https://www.rfs.nsw.gov.au/fire-info...r-fire-updates

scrubbedexpat094

Cheers for that duck. I know where my friends are in the Gong but not another one who lives north of Sydney. Hopefully we'll have news of Dreamy sometime today.

BEVS

Incredibly difficult all round . Families. Homes. Pets.

We know there are other BEers out there that may not post here so much so these days but remain connected to us all one way or another.

All the best everyone with these dreadful fires. Just stay safe .

quoll

Stay safe everyonr and good luck Polly! Personally I'm scared sh!tless at the thought of them having been through one, done recovery on several and had my son burned out totally in the past. No way would I every live in the bush, Canberra is bad enough!