Rural Fire Service – RAPHAELA ANGELOU

In the months leading up to Christmas in Australia, the atmosphere was charged with a negative current. You could see the threat hovering within the blistering sun, and in our parched gardens and lawns. We started to taste ash on our tongues, and took to sealing up our homes. I had to assist a few people who were battling with the air quality, and they all said that they didn’t have a history of asthma, and that their struggle took them by surprise. Fires raged all around my area, and a cursive look at the Fires Near Me app each morning, told a startling tale. This bushfire season was unprecedented, starting early and violently. Friends were forced to leave their homes, with minutes to spare, on occasion. Leading up to Christmas, an installation was put outside Wynyard station, a stark reminder of what had transpired, and what may lay ahead. Charred and devoid of green, it highlighted the calamity our country was facing.

I have followers in many countries, and I know you have all been looking on in horror. I was on the periphery of it, but have many friends who were out there fighting the fires. Some of my mates had to evacuate, and some lost property. Asthmatics have died due to the air quality, and those in ill health have had to seek refuge inside. The smoke permeated through operating theatres, MRI machines, and office blocks. I have had to resort to steroids, two preventers and face masks in order to breathe. An estimated billion native animals have perished. The festive season saw many of us unable to celebrate. Rather, we were refreshing our phones for the latest updates, checking in with loved ones, masking up and feeling helpless as our country burned. This is unprecedented, and can’t be allowed to be our new normal.

Personally, I am appalled at how our government has handled this tipping point. They refused to meet with fire chiefs in order to prepare for this season. They denied the reality of climate change, favouring coal and ignoring alternatives put forth by scientists. Here is an excellent resource on National Geographic, detailing the scientific reality of climate change. Australia has one of the highest emissions of carbon in the world, and the time to look into renewable energy sources to greatly lower our emissions, is today.

We have good people on the ground, helping to restore and rebuild lives and homes, and also rehabilitate the wildlife that survived. The cost of these bushfires will be astronomical, not just in 2020, but in the years to come. Here are a few ideas of where to donate:

Spend with them is an Instagram account, set up by Turia Pitt. When you order a product from this account, you shall be directly helping towns and businesses affected by the fires.

Donate to Animals Australia

In NSW, you can donate to your local Rural Fire Service

In Victoria, donations can be made to the Country Fire Association

In South Australia, you can donate to the CFS

Givit

Foodbank

WILDLIFE

Donate to Animals Australia

Wires

Port Macquarie Koala Hospital

Wildlife Victoria

Educate yourselves on climate change, and start adapting your life. This is a crisis that will affect our world as a whole. You can check out your carbon footprint on this excellent free resource. We can all do better. We must do better. It should be our tribute to those who perished in the bushfires; those who lost everything, and the animals who succumbed. Australia is a breathtakingly beautiful country, which shall rebuild and restore. We need you to visit in the year ahead, to buy from us, and receive our hospitality. I believe as a people, we are already saying, ‘never again.’ I feel the clarion call has been received and responded to. There have been protests and free educational sessions arranged to deal with climate change and demand action. The commentary on social media toward what transpired in the years leading up to this disaster, has been blistering. We simply won’t stand for inaction, nor apathy. Not anymore.

May you have a peaceful Christmas and holiday season. My thoughts are with everybody who has been affected by the bushfires around Australia, and my deepest sympathy to the families of the young fathers who tragically died in service to their community. To make a donation to the families, you can follow this link. To donate to the Rural Fire Service, click here. They need every dollar we can spare. They have managed to keep rising and return to the frontline with lungs full of smoke and little sleep to protect us all. It’s the definition of heroism. They have had to leave their regular jobs for many weeks, and I reckon they all deserve to be paid in full, and have tax exemption status for the year ahead.

May the skies open this Christmas, and bring desperately-needed rain. May our world finally know peace. May you know how loved you are, whatever you decide to do on Christmas Day. Last night, as my daughter and I made our way home, droplets of rain hit the windshield. At first we smiled, rejoicing at the fact. However, we soon noticed that the droplets were mixed with ash, running down the windows like a lady who hasn’t taken her makeup off after a night out. The pitiful rain left shortly after, and the clouds blanketed Sydney. Surgeons have smelt the smoke in city operating rooms. We smelt it at the beach yesterday. There has been no escaping the threat. Just as tears can’t be contained forever, neither can rain. I just hope that it appears sooner than later, and puts out the fires and fills our dams. As in all times of disaster, we only need look at the helpers to see the best of humanity. It is our turn to help them.