Dunno what else to say but good luck. :)
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Dunno what else to say but good luck. :)
sat 11.30 am the smoke is so thick you could cut it with a chisel. there is no wind to speak of in the mansfield township. Everyone is seeing this as a "CALM BEFORE THE STORM" moment. The wind may come later tonight or tomorrow.
Here's what things looked like yesterday.
Another web site for following fires.
You can zone it anywhere in Australia.
http://sentinel1.ga.gov.au/Sentinel/imf.jsp
Has anyone heard how Rob is going?
Not lately but the wind isn't one of those blustery northerly's, although it was this morning. Now it seems pretty calm and i heard on the radio that they had managed to make a few new containment lines overnight.
I've been up on the roof all morning, clearing gutters etc. Tomorrow is the bad one. They say strong winds which is just right for some lunatic to get his jollies.
We have a local CFA meeting tomorrow, just in case.
In the meantime, i hope no news is good news for Rob and Meg.
I rang them last night and they are taking the night in shifts to spot for embers, there is also a cousin of Robs there to help out.
So far so good for them.
Al :)
Hope they take care.
You be careful Gumby, plastercine has a very low melting point.
Supposed to be hot here tomorrow as well, guess I'll be looking to the horizon a fair bit.
current situation as at 9.30 am sat 9th dec. looks like woodborer and kin are right in the thick of it. wind is very mild if any at all at present (6.00 pm) but predicted to pick up tomorrow. north and norwest. to be followed by thunderstorms. I never rains it pours.
Whats the lil red dots?
Fire units perchance?
Thinking of you and yours.
At times likes this we realise how close the web brings us and how small the world really is.
Keep safe!
Crikey, I hope it leaves Rob and Meg alone.
good luck guys!
Active fires I beleive.Quote:
Originally Posted by outback
Al :(
The red dots are from the last hour or so and the yellow dots are from 12 to 24 hours ago
From The Age just a little while ago.
Quote:
Originally Posted by TheAge
We are all fine.
Today was reasonably mild with hardly any smoke but it has come in since about 1AM. We enjoyed a BBQ and a few drinks tonight with my cousin and our daughter and partner who drove up yesterday to give us hand.
What Robyn from the Tolmie Tavern says is true, the CFA, DSE and Mansfield Shire have been fantastic giving us information and updates as well as protecting our properties and lives (and tools).
We are West of Tolmie townhip so we are not in any immediate danger although this situation could change with the wind and stray embers. There are many others who are in far more danger than ourselves.
I am on watch until 3AM this morning - only 30 minutes to go before I wake up my cousin. There is another community meeting at 9AM.
Thanks for your concerns and kind words.
Good to hear you are keeping positive.
Glad to hear things are not getting any worse. I hope the fire does not come any closer to you and yours.
Pete
Hi WB
Thanks for the updates - It's a huge relief to know you, Meg and the Pythons are ok.
cheers
Wendy
Checking here every day to see how you are doing.
From what I see on the news Tolmie seems to be very community orientated and have the best interests of their neighbours foremost.
A few communities could learn from this.
As for firefighting, unless a lot has changed, but DSE used to make half asred attempts at putting out a blaze and left the CFA to finish off the job.
I have a lot of time for the CFA who do a wonderful job without any financial reward whilst the other lot look forward to heaps of overtime in these situations. Having spent 2 years with them on a secondment I became somewhat dubious of their motives.
Anyway, I am glad to see all is well Rob, Meg and Pythons:)
Me too. Keeping the fingers crossed for you. You seem to be as prepared as you can.Quote:
Originally Posted by ptc
Cheers
Graeme
Tolimie residents are not yet out of the woods so to speak but the pressure is off for the time being.
Fires ran and spotted to the north east today.
All crews were pulled off the Jamieson fires today prior to the change.
the situation is very tense at present cause no-one (including the bureau) knows what the wind is gonna do.
Currently (Close to midnight) there is not a breath of wind. speculation has it that this means a southerly change but I dont think so.
We are still safe but as dadpad said, anything could still happen. It is looking better but a wind change could turn the whole situation around.
The communities South of us seem to be in a serious position, the people running our community meetings also do their's and I am sure the messages received at those meetings will greatly assist those intending to stay and defend.
At the meeting this morning everyone looked very tired and we probably all had a rest this afternoon but still keeping someone posted to keep a look out.
It is a waiting and hoping game. The CFA and DSE are continuing their hard work. I hear what Iain said but our experience with the DSE (Department of Sustainability and Environment) has been very positive.
You are correct in stating that the Tolmie Community is a wondeful supportive community. Here we are new comers but made to feel most welcome by everyone we meet. They must be all woodworkers;)
Our pythons don't seem to be affected by all the smoke as they still have healthy appetites and are still very friendly.
The smoke also hasn't affected the tools either, the LNs were getting a bit of a workout today on some redgum in between checking for embers or any major changes on the horizon.
I have noticed just how dry the air is up here. All my plane handles, chisel handles and hammer handles have been loose since moving up here. I have fixed them all of course.
here is the most current situation. Blue arrows indicate trouble spots.
Glad to hear your going well Rob - waiting is hell isn't it!
I ended up up back up near home on a grader since Friday night as everyone was anticipating that it would break through. I was talking to my old man about his memory of black friday yesterday and he couldn't talk about it without his hands trembling. People were concerned in the 2003 fires, but they are dead scared of these ones. The ammount of work being put in both in fighting and preparing for this fire has to be seen to be believed. We're a bit over 150 km's east south-east as the crow flies from Rob - to give you an idea the fire would have travelled that distance in a couple of hours if the winds came as predicted.
The offer is still on if you need a break to get some proper rest as there's no more the be done up home.
Thanks for posting those maps dadpad :)
Rob & Meg, glad you're still OK.
All is calm and quiet in Mansfield. we really have been lucky with the wind situation.
I can hear choppers buzzing in and out of town going to and from the airstrip for fuel, pilot relief atc.
Cooler temps and no wind.
Hi from your ex-workmates Rob. Sounds like you and Meg won't have to worry about the garden for a while.
cross your fingers for Rob and meg, in fact cross your legs and arms.
I dont know exactly where rob and meg (west of Tolmie) are but the current wind direction will carry embers etc to the west of Tolmie township. If it jumps containment the fire will run in their direction.
4.00 pm monday
DSE and CFA advise residents in the Whitlands, Burders Lane, Powers Lookout Road, and Mansfield to Whitfield Road and they may be threatened by this fire. These residents are advised to activate their fire plans immediately.
Just don't let them lull you into a sense of false security:D :D :DQuote:
Originally Posted by Wood Borer
all/most truck have gone from Tolmie. which must mean its tidy up there Apparently all trucks have been sent to jamieson.
Just shows you that while a wind change may be good for some it's usually equally bad for others. :(
G'day Doug and welcome to the Bulletin Board - it took a fire to finally get you into the woodwork seriously:eek: There are always positives, a pity we don't always see them. I've been working on getting Doug into the woodwork for about 15 years.
With all those trips to the US you make, I am sure you can bring back some bargain priced quality tools. I sent you an EMAIL tonight.
Dadpad, I sent you a PM with our address and phone number.
Mark (Eastie) thanks for the kind offer mate, I don't think there is much more that can be done but if you want to drop across for a cuppa you are most welcome, there is always a bed for you too.
Iain, the girls seem to be taking the fires in their stride, they are just coiled up in a relaxed pose. They take less looking after than your neddies, they don't kick either.:D
Obviously we are still safe. Tonight is quite cool (jumper weather) but the winds seem to be gusting now and then ranging from the East around to the North West. We are constantly keeping watch.
Pumping water from the dam for the garden and keeping long hours chews into woodworking time but I am getting some done slowly.
The two photos show my temporary workshop and the redgum and mountainash tray I am making to be raffled at the Tolmie Tavern in aid of the fire effort.
No cobwebs, floor space and a nice view. Can't be Robs workshop.;) :D :D
I wonder how many greenies and tree huggers are up there saving the trees?????
Scammander in the south east of Tasmania copped it last night, lots of houses gone, could be up to 23 they say. This is bloody awful. The undergrowth here in the south is pretty thick. It is unsually lush, even fruit trees are carrying more fruit than normal. One of my neighbours has started cutting hay and says he has to really give it to the tractor to cut through. I feel for those people up there in the beautiful NE Vic mountain side. I feel for anyone caught up in this nightmare and hope they get through it OK. The rotten part is that summer has only just started.
HA!!Quote:
Originally Posted by ernknot
Rob, Could you head out and find the nearest CFA/DSE bloke and tap him on the shoulder and tell them to get wriggle on? I'm getting smoked out up here...:rolleyes:
Dan
PS I hope all those in affected areas are ok. It was pretty gusty up here last night, a nightmare for the fireies.
My older brother is pretty dark green. Grows organic vegetables and saves rainforests. He's also captain of the yack CFA unit. Both his kids are members In fact one of his kids was on the telly doing a news interview from Whitfield or somewhere the other day. We make jokes about how black his overalls get from hugging trees affected by fire. I had to go to his place in '03 to look after it for him when the Mt pilot fire threatened cause he was too busy helping out other people. My brother and his family are some of the most dedicated volunteers I have ever known. they are also greenies.Quote:
Originally Posted by ernknot
Whats been your contribution?
I would imagine very little given his location.Quote:
Originally Posted by dadpad
Strewth Rob sounds as if you want it to burn down!! :eek: :eek: :eek: :p :p :D :DQuote:
Originally Posted by Wood Borer
Insurance job was it? :D :D
Al :p
Strewth , give me a chance, we have only been here for 4 weeks, do you know how long it took to cultivate those cobwebs in Camberwell?;)
Al, :D :D :D
Dan, I reckon the smoke will be around for quite some time. It came in here about 1AM yesterday morning and hasn't cleared all day. It was so thick here today, I had trouble seeing the pencil marks on some dovetails I was cutting.
Ernknot, I was so sorry to hear about your fires down there in Tassie and the loss of property. Up here we have been fortunate that very few properties have been lost. I think that is due to being educated by the CFA, having much more warning than the Taswegians, not having the 100 Km/hr winds experienced in Tassie and just good luck.
We are stll safe, the immediate danger has passed up here however we are still being extremely vigilant, nobody up here is being complacent because it could still kick off. The cooler weather (2.5 degrees early this morning) is also giving the firefighters a good chance to backburn to reinforce the fire breaks.