Australian bush fires are extremely hard to control due to the evolution of the plants. Eucalyptus trees have leaves containing flammable oil. This is actually designed to promote fire! As eucalypts are specially adapted to survive fires, it is in their interest to kill off those plants which aren't fire tolerant. Eucalypts have thick bark that acts as insulation, and lignotubers which contain bud and food reserves to regenerate after fires.
Australian Wattle, banksia and the grass tree are all able to survive and benefit from fires, some even require very intense heat to germinate. Indeed, the Mountain Ash tree seed needs fire to regenerate.
The specific factors that contributed to this tragedy are, like many disasters, many.
One factor is obviously the weather conditions. That day, Saturday 7th February 2009, was in excess of 46.4ºC (115ºF), with relative humidity at 6% and wind gusts of up to 100km/h (60mph+).
The day before the fires, chief officer of the Fire Authority "If I said our (weather conditions) were 'bloody horrible', I am understating it: I have never seen figures like this".
With those sorts of figures, entire towns didn't stand a chance. Usually, when you see smoke coming, then you have time to activate your plan; fight or flee. Not this time. Embers from the trees have been known to travel over a kilometre in a matter of seconds, giving no one a chance to react. I have seen photos of a plume of smoke well in the distance, yet spot-fires were starting to erupt on front lawn. You cannot outrun a fire in the Australian bush.
Another factor is the fuel load in the bush. 8 tonnes per hectare is considered a fire hazard. The fuel load in those areas are estimated at between 35 and 50 tonnes per hectare. A fourfold increase in fuel leads to a thirteenfold increase in fire heat.
It also sounds like these fires sprang up without warning. There were no warnings on radio by the time these towns were razed to the ground. You can tell by how these people perished. Burnt out cars litter the road, some crashed due to the thick smoke hampering visibility. Some people tried to flee on foot, hopelessly stranded in the street. Many survivors said it sounded like a jet engine roaring towards them.
Another reason why the death toll was higher than it probably should have been was the people there. Many had moved there from the city to be able to afford a home for their family. This meant they had little experience in the dangers of the bush. This relocation of people also meant a denser population in an area with high fuel load, making this extremely difficult to manage.
The town of Marysville
They believe over 300 people died. More than 700 homes were razed, many have not yet been inspected for deceased.
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