At the gates of Hell (by BRUCE REDMAN)

Bruce Redman films Major David Eldridge encouraging firefighters at Wittlesea

In the wake of the apocalyptic bushfires that swept Victoria in February, I was privileged to observe up close and personally, the incredible, tirelessness of the Salvation Army at work. Despite saturation media coverage worldwide I don’t think there is any way of understanding the extent of the devastation without actually being there. Being there among the grieving hundreds who had lost their loved ones (at least 170 lives lost), among the 7000 people left homeless as their houses and possessions vaporised in the intense heat, among the officers, chaplains and volunteers who comforted the survivors and the workers with a word, a meal, some cash or clothes.

The town of Kinglake was hit hard by the fires One guy from Marysville (a tiny previously picture postcard town) described the approaching fire as a fierce hurricane. When he and his old Mum saw it and heard it coming, they jumped in the car and left with what they had on their back. They consider themselves the fortunate ones as their town was completely wiped out and somewhere between 80 and 100 people didn’t make it.

There was the story about the retired newsreader and his wife who were trapped in their Kinglake home as the fires surrounded them. They had no choice but to wait for the fire to consume them. The news reported that they were found “fused together in embrace”.

Captain Danielle Strickland arranges welfare for a firefighter who was a fire survivor himself.

We went through Flowerdale when it was still closed to residents and media and were gob-smacked at the number of homes destroyed and how little was left. In most cases there was a chimney and a pile of singed roofing iron. As I stood in the smoky, dry air of Flowerdale I was moved by the silence - no people, no cars, no animals, not even insects - the fire did not discriminate.

I had a lot of SA “fire songs” running through my head over those days. We sing a lot about the all consuming fire and its cleansing properties but it was difficult to see anything good come out of this seemingly random obliteration of people’s lives.

One thing I did see was the strength of community and how strangers opened their hearts and wallets to try and help. I saw the people of Marysville, previously rich or poor, bond together as never before with a promise of rebuilding their lives again, shoulder to shoulder, brick by brick. I saw a new respect by everyone there for the community workers, in particular the police, the firefighters and the salvos. Brave, unconditional, unselfish giving, time and time again. It’s easy to shake a fist at nature in these circumstances, the drought and resultant dryness of the ground, the fires started by lightning, the wind, but in fact the Australian bush is designed to be regularly destroyed and renewed by means of bushfire. An Aboriginal friend of mine explained to me that there are many trees and shrubs in the bush which can only rejuvenate when the seed pod is burst open by fire.

The silent aftermath of Flowerdale

Rejuvenation through the purging of fire.

I pray that once the fires have had their way and people are able to complete their grieving and start to rebuild their lives that they may all experience a new beginning.