Bushfire recovery hits mental danger time
Bushfire recovery hits mental danger time
05 July 2013
published by www.theaustralian.com.au
Australia — An icy wind whips through its many vacant blocks, some with caravans or tents where homes once stood.
On the road to Port Arthur, which passes through the oyster-growing town, the miles and miles of blackened trees are sprouting green and the pastures are lush.
It’s a far cry from the day six months earlier that made Dunalley as infamous as places like Kinglake in Victoria.
On the hottest day in Hobart’s history, and with winds that turned conditions officially catastrophic, 200 homes were lost in Tasmania.
More than 60 were in Dunalley and a total of 300 damaged properties have since been cleared in the state’s bushfire-hit areas.
Officials have been wary of the six-month mark, coming as it does in the middle of one of Australia’s toughest winters.
The experience of Black Saturday in Victoria tells them its an emotional danger time.
“It’s a difficult time for a lot of people,” says Red Cross Bushfire Recovery Officer Rebecca Newton.
“Winter’s obviously well and truly here.
“People are fatigued.
“They’ve have put a tremendous amount of energy and effort into supporting other people … (while) keeping themselves going as well and focusing on rebuilding or getting back into a routine.
“That’s tremendously tiring.”
Tiring and mentally taxing in Dunalley, where residents, businesses and nearby farmers were all hit hard.
As well as the random loss of homes, oyster growers had sheds and equipment destroyed and farmers lost stock and fencing.
The local school was turned into a twisted wreck and its children have spent their year in temporary facilities, a permanent building still in the planning phase.
Support services, which still include food handouts, are expected to be in place for another 12 months.
“Everybody’s at different stages in the recovery process,” Ms Newton tells AAP.
“Some people are travelling comparatively well and other people are coming forward for the first time and asking for assistance.
“A lot of what people may be experiencing is actually perfectly normal given the events they’ve experienced.
“What we say to people is, if you feel that you’re not coping very well despite the support of your friends and family then get help.”
A state government report released this week lists a mind-boggling array of payments for disaster relief, emergency assistance, grants and loans but it is generally agreed the fires cost Tasmania $45 million.
A Red Cross appeal raised $8.78 million of which $4.6 million has been allocated and $1.5 million has been put aside for longer-term needs.
The Insurance Council of Australia says insurers have paid out close to $90 million in response to nearly 1800 claims.
Officials say most who lost homes have decided to stay and the frames of several new houses are dotted around Dunalley.
The clearing of blocks, after a delay because of asbestos, has only recently been completed and came as a huge relief.
One family lived in the garage behind their mangled house for nearly six months, says Dunalley voluntary fire brigade chief Brad Westcott, who also runs the general store at nearby Murdunna.
“She came in with a big smile on her face and said ‘We’ve cleaned the block up’,” he says.
“Basically that meant she didn’t have to walk past or drive past or, every time she looked out the window, see the remnants of her house sitting there.
“That was a stage for her.”
Red tape and fees have been blamed for some delays in rebuilding but the state government says everything possible has been done to assist.
“Many of the levies or fees that are normally in place I understand have been waived,” says Premier Lara Giddings.
“I would actually think that it’s time to be positive and to pat those government authorities on the back.”
Spirit remains strong and one couple has taken to keeping the community in the loop by updating blackboards scattered in and around town.
One advertises an upcoming country music concert.
Another, tellingly, a talk by disaster psychologist Dr Rob Gordon.
“Generally people are fine,” Mr Westcott says.
“People still will have their moments.
“My wife was talking to someone the other day and she had a tear in her eye because she was speaking about it.
“But we’re not living and breathing it.
“It is hard. Every time you go somewhere you see the damage and the trees but you slowly get used to it.”
Ms Newton, who has also worked at Kinglake, says the message from that community to Dunalley is don’t rush.
Decisions on whether and how to rebuild take time and there are no right and wrong answers.
She says agencies like the Red Cross are a back-up to the community’s own strength.
“It’s about saying to people, ‘You’re going to have good days and bad days'”, she says.
“You don’t have to be super tough and super resilient the whole time’.
“Regional and rural communities across Australia are inherently tough, inherently resilient. We’ve had to be.
“It’s about drawing on that.”
