UP IN SMOKE

For Gonzo......

SOUTHLANDER IN THE THICK OF AUSSIE BUSHFIRES

We grew up with David Latham, we were all part of the Otatara horsey set. He flies muttonbirders as well. He is a pilot with some significant flying experience under his belt so we are not surprised to see that he has been helping out across the Tasman to fight the bush fires. Helipro also has a couple of machines in Aussie as well that are used for firefighting.

BUSH FIRES SCARE THE CRAP OUT OF US

We visit Aussie a bit due to the fact that BB's partner comes from South Australia. Anyway about two years ago we ended up there at the time there was a bush fire near Penola. I, of course wanted to take a look. The Aussie Rock thought I had lost my mind. Anyway we had to skirt round the fire to get to where we needed to go. It burned for quite some time and even though it was not a huge fire, compared to the blazes raging there at the moment, the flames were enormous. But still the thing that struck me and remains etched in my memory was the density of the smoke. You would get lost and overwhelmed in an instant. It is without a doubt a very nasty way to die. We feel a huge sense of sadness at what has happened in Victoria. We also travelled through the Adelaide Hills - the scene of another horrific fire on Ash Wednesday in 1983. And it was easy to see how people would have been trapped so quickly with the density of bush surrounding some properties.

We are glad that we can offer our firefighters to assist the brave firemen of Australia.
It is probably the least and most we can do.