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ADF Chief Moved During Visit to Fire Ravaged Victoria |
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Sunday, 15 February 2009 |
 Moved by the spirit of the people of Kinglake, Australia's defence force chief, Angus Huston, is convinced residents will rebuild the town.
"They're not going to let it beat them," Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston said today. "They are determined to reconstruct their community and go on from there."
Air Chief Marshal Houston was visiting soldiers in the field, promising to work hand in hand with relief agencies.
More than 1000 defence force personnel, including reservists, have joined the rebuilding process of communities devastated by the bushfires.
The first convoy of army trucks left for Kinglake and Marysville today, carrying 120 pallets of emergency equipment including tents, chairs, tables, generators, shovels, chainsaws and jerry cans.
Army officers were a welcome sight for residents still coming to terms with the massive loss of life and property.
Chief Marshal Houston said the the Australian Defence Force was ready
to help and assist as long as the Victorian Government required.
He said soldiers roles included helping police recover bodies, clearing
roads and making fire breaks, and offering medical and psychological
support to residents.
More than 300 will be stationed at Kinglake, with another 650 stationed across the fire-affected areas of the state.
"This has been the biggest peace time disaster in my time in the
force," Chief Marshal Houston said. "Quite a few members (in this
taskforce) have been personally affected."
Of the 181 people confirmed dead in the fires, there were 147
fatalities in the Kinglake area and 35 in Kinglake alone. Most
buildings in the town were destroyed by the deadliest fires Australia
has ever seen.
The equipment will be used to set up community service hubs, to be used
by emergency services helping the residents of bushfire affected areas.
Chief Marshal Houston said aerial photos had not prepared him for the scale of the disaster.
"It's just overwhelming, the scale of the devastation and the intensity
of what must have been an incredibly hot and explosive fire,'' he said
after visiting one of the army bases in Kinglake.
"In areas it looked like something out of World War One, I just couldn't believe it.''
He also lauded the work of his own forces, many of whom have worked
20-hour days for five days in a row as they help out in the region.
"It's very intense work, it's been very emotionally draining work, very physically draining work,'' he said.
Many soldiers are carrying out searches of properties, but that will soon turn into a reconstruction phase.
"I'm very proud of them. I've told them that and I've said thank you to
each and every one I've met because they've been doing it tough,'' he
said.
Private Kay Kolivey, like most of the other defence personnel, is a reservist digger who has been in Kinglake since Sunday.
Her tasks have involved search patrols, gathering information and manning headquarters.
"It has been tough going, but the morale and support that one soldier
gives to another, nothing beats that,'' Private Kolivey said.
"We pick one another up, give one another a break when needed and just get the job done.''
She said soldiers have been praised by the locals for being there.
Driving through the smoke-charred hills into Kinglake, two signs of that spirit of the community are evident.
An Australian flag hangs proudly from a Kinglake sign, blowing strong, a symbol of the stoic mood of the residents.
Just metres up the road, on another sign, is a very different message of defiance.
A sticker placed on a road marker says ``you loot, I shoot'', again a signal of the very strong feelings in the community. |
