FROM THE EDITOR
Last Action Heroes
William Craske Editor No string of superlatives can do justice to the brave volunteers who have been battling blazes across the country, some of whom have been at it since October. Although it will be months before the total devastation of the bushfires is likely known, fires, at least for the moment, have consumed approximately 11 million hectares of land, an area equivalent in size of Bulgaria, hundreds of properties have been lost and hundreds of thousands of wildlife destroyed, before even mentioning the tragic cost of human lives and the pyrrhic endeavours of the homes that survived in towns that will not. Even as the ongoing politicisation of the event rages long after the final ashes have settled, volunteers in the road transport community have
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completed a second convoy into western NSW, an area spared from the fires, yet ravaged by years of drought. Some areas of Southwest Queensland and NSW have not seen meaningful rainfall in years. In December a convoy of nearly 30 trucks helped deliver 500,000 litres of water and food as part of the Caring for our Farmers initiative in what has proven to be a life-changing journey for its volunteers, many of whom returned again recently, sacrificing precious time off, for the Australia Day long weekend. In places like Murrurundi, Coonabarabran and Baradine, where tank water on properties is now a luxury for the very few who can ship it in from major cities, the little bore water on these sites has mostly evaporated. For many at Formula Chemicals, one of three Road Freight NSW members that volunteered services on the Caring for Farmers convoy, the December trip changed their lives forever. Leigh Smart, Road Freight NSW Chairman, said he encountered many farmers and families whose stories had grown men in tears. A couple in their late 80s, Bill and Chris Munge, had been forced to get rid of most of their cattle save for 20 head. They had survived many droughts and lost their house in the 2011 fires that besieged the area. Chris Munge was forced to give up her job as a nurse after being diagnosed with cancer. Her husband, Bill, whose knees are shot, can no longer operate his tractor. He keeps it charged outside anyway.
“They were the nicest couple you would ever meet,” said Smart. “They kept saying give the water to someone else more deserving.” This was common among the township: farmers refusing to take water who don’t have any in deferment to their community. “We went out into their paddock to drop off 9000 litres of cattle water. Talking to them there wasn’t a dry eye with any of my men. You wondered how they could survive under these adverse conditions,” he said. Some farmers have not been able to make a normal tasting cup of tea in two years. Others had their first proper shower in years. Another of the tanker drivers told of a desolate farm he called in on nearby where the farmer had been forced to shoot her dogs as she could no longer afford to feed them. She had lost her husband 20 years ago and was managing the huge property on her own. There were other stories of heartbreak people dare not repeat. Smart, who also serves as Formula Chemicals Director, helped arrange the return trip in which volunteers were encouraged to bring their families and cash – as a way of stimulating long suffering local economies by making as many purchases as possible in town. It’s through this kind of heroic selflessness, in which a dignity culture of communal fealty and duty is valued regardless of recognition or grievance status, that remains vital to our national identity.
