Living With the Bush

IN ITS interim report, the Bushfires Royal Commission called for a revised interpretation of Victoria's ''prepare, leave early or stay and defend'' policy. In future, the commission urged, the priority should always be saving human life, and in consequence it must be understood that the safest course of action when threatened by bushfire is always to leave early.

The reason the commission made this recommendation is simple: when there are blazes with the intensity of the fires that killed 173 people on Black Saturday, February 7, many properties will not be defensible. Firebreaks are of no avail if the winds fanning the flames and depositing burning embers are strong enough.

ON ASH Wednesday, I tried to evacuate with my three toddlers. This was a mistake. We became trapped and sat out the conflagration in a park in Upper Beaconsfield. It felt like a war zone. In the meantime, my husband and a neighbour fought for their lives in a foot of water in Cardinia Creek. They were lucky to survive. Nevertheless, we have since planted 50,000 trees.

 IF THE relaxation of planning controls over removing vegetation goes too far in developed areas, this could lead to problems for fire protection.

In typical residential areas, most trees are within 10 metres of a dwelling - the zone proposed for relaxing controls. If a significant proportion of these trees were removed in places like the Dandenongs, there could be a significant increase in wind speed.

Wind is critical to fire behaviour, particularly in catastrophic conditions, when atmospheric conditions become more important than fuels.