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NEWS > EVERYONE ELSE > AUSTRALIAN WILDFIRE DEATH TOLL RISES AS RESIDENTS UNWILLING TO GET OUT OF THE WAY
AUSTRALIAN WILDFIRE DEATH TOLL RISES AS RESIDENTS UNWILLING TO GET OUT OF THE WAY
February 10 2009
Melbourne, Australia – With more than 170 people dead and no signs of abating, the worst wildfires in the history of Australia continue to grip the land down under with fear. With over four hundred fires burning, emergency officials are stretched to their limits trying to fight the fires, evacuate the residents, and treat the wounded and are now asking residents to make their best effort to walk in the opposite direction of the blazing infernos rather than waiting in their homes until it is too late to get away.
“I think it's important that the nation braces itself for more bad news. This is a little horror which few of us anticipated,” said Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd. “We are encouraging people to leave their homes if there is a fire nearby. Give yourself plenty of time, pack up your family and important belongings and move to an area that is not on fire. This will free up emergency personnel and make their jobs much easier.”
The wildfires have burned over 200,000 hectares so far in the southern state of Victoria, including completely wiping out the cities of Maryville and Kinglake. So far over 3000 people have been displaced in the most urbanized state in the country and the numbers are expected to increase as the fires continue to rage.
“We expect the fires to continue for a few more days so we are urging people to leave their residences. Get in your car and drive away to a relative’s home or a hotel but please do not stay in your homes,” continued the Prime Minister. “Staying in your home significantly increases the possibility of severe injury and or death. Please understand that you cannot stand up to a fire, you cannot stop a bush fire by sheer will. Fire does not respect defiance so please get out of its way.”
Officials expect that it will take a number of weeks before all the wildfires are completely extinguished and are hoping for a break in the intense heat, which has reached highs of 48 degrees Celsius, to aid in the firefighting. Less reliable though is the expectation of the collective intelligence of the populous.
“People are drawn to disaster all over the world. From people moving back into New Orleans, to living on fault lines no matter how massive the disaster people keep coming back for more. In poorer countries people have little option, but in first world nations there really is no excuse for people to keep rebuilding after destruction,” said Scrape TV Disaster analyst Walter Lim. “There seems to be this collective mentality that rebuilding will somehow stave off disaster, kind of get up and dust yourself off and move on, but nature doesn’t respond in the same way say a bully would. Nature could care less about will power and determination. It just kind of does what it wants to do.”
“As for the situation in Australia, people just need to get up and move. It’s a massive country with a very low population so there is plenty of room to move around. You don’t need to sit in the path of destruction, just get up and move,” continued Lim. “Australia is a beautiful country and they’ve made some contributions to global culture but you have to think that all that vegemite eating has done something to the common sense section of their collective brains. Just get out of the way. Move and out of the way of the raging inferno so that you don’t get burned up and die. Seriously. Outback people are tough but this is fire.” 
Meanwhile officials are also busy determining which of the fires are natural and which are manmade, something Prime Minister Rudd has called an act of mass murder.
“Whatever the cause of the fire you have to deal with it as presented. Criminal investigation can wait until later once everyone is out of the way,” continued Lim. “I’m sure the insurance companies will be happy with arson, but that does no good if you are burned to a crisp. Seriously, move people. Throw a shrimp on the barbie another day or you’re going to be the one getting cooked.”
Emil Uliya, International Correspondent
NEWS > EVERYONE ELSE > AUSTRALIAN WILDFIRE DEATH TOLL RISES AS RESIDENTS UNWILLING TO GET OUT OF THE WAY
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