Patricia Gill, Denmark Bulletin

Climate change has driven the occurrence of extreme fire risk days in Denmark from two in 1930 to 150 expected [by 2030].

The occurrence of days has risen incrementally in more recent years from 50 extreme risk days in 2019 driven by the warming climate and earlier summer conditions.

Also indications are that Denmark is two months ahead of ‘normal’ weather conditions with silage and hay being cut in paddocks in October and the beginning of November rather than in December. Lead bushfire ready facilitator Murray Brooker said these were the facts presented at a Department for Fire and Emergency Services conference in Fremantle earlier this year.

“Sub-soil conditions, humidity, wind-speed directions which are typical for January and February are happening right now,” he said.

In 2020 the temperature had risen 1.47C over expectations taking climate change into account and would likely to have surpassed the 1.5C rise expected for 2023.

Mr Brooker said his discussions with former rural fire services director Murray Carter over the Bushfire Ready weekend had revealed an ‘overlapping’ of northern (north of the Tropic of Capricorn) and southern fire seasons in WA.

The overlap meant access to high-season fire resources could be stretched beyond capacity.

“If they are being used in the north they might not be available in the south,” Mr Brooker said.

He urged all residents not to stay and defend their properties in the event of a major bushfire.

Interviews with people who had defended their properties in those circumstances had overwhelmingly shown they would never do it again.

Mr Brooker said ‘a whole gamut’ of factors should be considered to successfully defend a property such as the person’s emotional, physical and medical capabilities.

And this should only be considered in moderate to high fire risk conditions.

Emotional factors included unexpected, severe responses to the challenging conditions.

“A firestorm is like embers hailing and is terrifying even to very experienced firefighters,” Mr Brooker said.

Denmark’s brigades had 17 trucks to service 3600 properties in the shire and if firefighters saw someone defending their house they would move on to another property.

“Life is worth so much more than a house,” Mr Brooker said.

“If a person is trapped it would probably take a lot of resources to go in and save them.

“It is an individual choice but the end result could be devastating.”

Other factors to consider when defending a property were adequate water, fuel, food, adequate training, PPE and that the person might be left on their own for many days.

“It has to be thoroughly thought through,” Mr Brooker said.

“There is so much to do, I would not recommend it to anyone.

“In an ember attack you cannot breath, you cannot see and if you are injured you may have to manage for quite a few days.”

This article appeared in the Denmark Bulletin, 9 November 2023.