Into the Inferno

I gasped for air while making a mad dash out the doors to the base. “Oh, you’re Maisarah, right?” Said an attendant standing by the reception desk.

“Here, you’re going to need this.” I quickly slid to a stop, grabbed the identification card, and thanked her before throwing open the doors. Once outside, the sight was overwhelming. All around me were firefighters driving their trucks off into the distance and helicopters loaded with gallons of water soaring into the sky above a sea of volunteers.

“ID Card?” A blonde woman seemingly in her twenties suddenly came forward. 

“Hmm, okay, I see, you’re with me and the others. Come on.” Wasting no time, I huddled next to her and equipped the firefighting gear. They gave me everything I needed to protect myself and the others. Despite being a volunteer, I felt like I was actually a permanent part of the crew. 

“Ugh man, these fires….” The blonde woman muttered. The way she said those words piqued my interest; I wasn’t expecting her to chat, “Oh, the name’s Rose, by the way. Take a wild guess of what these fires were influenced by.”

I had a good idea already, “Climate change?” I mean, what else could it be, right? I remember reading a lot about climate change activists on social media. News about climate change is everywhere, but personally, I don't know much about it. All I know is that other dry regions are going to suffer in the same way as Australia.

I’m still unsure what are the real driving factors of these bushfires. One of my friends shared some climate change articles with me before, but I was ignorant at the time. Maybe I should’ve read more about it when I had the chance.

It’s scorching hot and the heat is starting to get to me. I shook my head in an attempt to end the dizziness I felt. It surprisingly worked. 

“Bingo.”

Completely suited up, we grabbed a spot on our designated fire truck. “Any legitimate website would be able to explain it, but basically the changes in climate cause the air around it to become hotter.  Combine hot air with the already dry climate, and you get the perfect fuel necessary to produce these fires. You get what I’m saying, right?” Rose continued.

“Definitely. Regardless, I hope more people out there can understand it so clearly like you.” I really meant it when I said this because most people don’t really give their full attention whilst reading the news. Like me, they are usually too busy scrolling through their social media feeds just to fill in their time.

“Well, can’t really blame the other fellas for not knowing. We Australians understand just how long fire has been around to shape nature. But just look at these nasty fires. This is just too much, you know. It’s not just humans who got affected by it but also the cute animals who inhabit the area.” Rose blinked rapidly as the black smoke thickened. 

Perhaps all the chit-chatting made time feel faster, but before I knew it, we had arrived at the site in no time flat. As soon as I hopped out of the vehicle, I could feel the intense heat coming from the fires. It was as if I had been transported to the surface of the sun.

“Careful now”, Rose said, holding a large hose. As I helped her hold it steady, another person at the other end of the hose flipped a switch sending the water roaring out into the inferno woods at full blast. 

“Our only priority right now is getting more control on this part of the bushfire. If that can be done, it could give us a leg up!” A professional firefighter announced.

“You got that redhead?” Rose asked. Even though I couldn’t see her face, I could tell that she was cracking a smile at the mention of my hijab’s colour during this situation.

“Oh, very funny… and yeah, I got it. In fact, I think it’s best we pull up a bit more now too.” Rose nodded and signalled for our fire truck to move up ahead ever so slightly. Time moves ever so slowly when you’re battling a massive blaze. 

As the fire raged on, I could only imagine the whole scale of the situation. At that moment, Rose and I were just at the edge of the wildfire. There, we were only merely surrounded by the charred remains of trees and other lasting destruction. Our job was challenging for sure; however, I began to wonder about the others. Overhead, I saw multiple helicopters soar over; I could only imagine the ocean of flames those pilots oversaw once above the billows of smoke and ash. Escaping a deep dark plume yet still under a fiery red sky.

For a brief moment, I was able to reprieve along with Rose and some others. I quickly snatched a bottle of ice-cold water, gulped it down as Rose chuckled and took more calm sips of her drink. “Don’t you laugh at me; we’re doing the hardest job here. Plus, I’m still getting used to this.”

Rose then burst into giggles, “Oh please, there’s more in this than just firefighting. You probably know that because you seem like a bright lady, but here’s what I mean.” She gestured to a pair of employees that were tapping away diligently with their iPads. 

“Okay, so there’s a preserve not far from here… it’s not damaged by the fire yet but it’s in the fire’s path,” a man said. 

“Hang on, let me pull it up…. Okay, I see it.” The woman next to him swiped furiously, “Okay, let’s see, we got koalas, dunnarts, cockatoos and Western Ground Parrots… and that’s just in one general area.” 

“We’ve got quite a day ahead of us. Assemble the other units, then we can move out.” They both then quickly made a mad dash out of sight.

“Okay, all right, I see your point…” I assured Rose.

“I’m just saying, there’s a lot more to overcoming this situation than just spraying the water here and there. It’s a complete madhouse for people and animals throughout the country.”

I nodded with a fist pump, “Yeah, you’re right. We’re all a well-oiled machine that works together to put out these fires.” 

“That’s not the first thing that comes to my mind but… sure! Now let’s get back and keep at it with our jobs.”

That moment was just one of many lessons I learned amongst my earlier days with the Australian fire fighting forces. As cheesy as it sounds, I learned a valuable lesson in teamwork. Something that would help me for the most stressful part of my first day’s entire ordeal.

I was laser-focused on getting the flames put out, and for the most part the team did it. About two hours later, I was getting hints that it was time to fall back for now. Good thing too because the scorched earth feeling was starting to become unbearable.

“All right, let’s pull back for now,” I heard someone declare. I obliged and urgently helped Rose put back the hose and other supplies. It was then that someone’s voice reached my ears; it sounded like a desperate cry for help.

“Hey, where are you going?” Rose said as I tried off a little bit to get a better listen.

“Hold it, it’s against protocol to wander off out of nowhere like that!” A burly man exclaimed as he grabbed my arm. I looked forward ahead of the flames in a dazed urgency and caught a glimpse of a car in the woods totalled by a collapsed tree. Inside, I could just barely see the unmoving silhouette. 

“There’s someone out there, look at where I’m pointing!” The man followed my finger and immediately called over his crew. I quickly grabbed an axe and followed both the man and Rose. We made our way, carefully manoeuvring our approach towards the car and the distressed civilian. 

I swung with great precision and chopped off the tree branches that surrounded the door as the man carefully opened the door to guide the unconscious woman out. I took the opportunity to take her over my shoulder and guide her to one of the stretchers our supervisor’s team head prepared.

The young woman’s eyes fluttered open, and she tried to murmur something, prompting me to shush her gently. “It’s okay, don’t worry. You need to save your strength right now.”

“Good work out there volunteer, we’ll take it from here.” A paramedic declared before taking the stretcher. 

“Well, someone’s definitely in for some big recognition when we get back.” Rose smirked, “but there’s no time for that now. Let’s go.” 

I nodded and honestly felt relieved that I managed to actually save someone before going back on board the truck with everyone else.

Three months after

Three months later, the bushfires had finally come to an end. Still, the disastrous effects it left on the civilians, wildlife, economy and more were only the beginning. These thoughts wouldn’t leave my head even as Rose was lecturing on my first day of being an official Firefighter. 

“Hey, what are you thinking about, Mai?” Rose disrupted my train of thoughts. She brought a steaming mug filled with hot chocolate in her hands. 

“Is that for me?” I asked.

“Yes, young lady. Still thinking about the fire? Wait for a second. I need to bring my drink.” Rose stood up and went to the counter.

Rose raised an eyebrow, “So are you sure you’re ready for this?”

“You better believe it; I’ve been spending the past month familiarising myself with all of Australia. Quiz me. I’ll get a two-hundred per cent score. 

“Sheesh, okay I believe you.”

I chucked confidently. I waited for Rose to finish sipping her cappuccino before asking her, “do you remember you asked me a question when we first met?” I waited for Rose to finish sipping her cappuccino. She not only had a drink in her hands but also a slice of fondant cake. 

“Yes. Just kidding, no. That was like 3 months ago. I don’t have a good memory. Remind me.” Rose chuckled. She took a fork and cut through the cake before feeding it into her mouth. 

“Oh, this is so good! You should try some. Here you can have some of mine.” Rose shoved her plate to me. Okay, that can wait.

“You asked me what caused the bushfires, and we both agreed it has to do with climate change. I wanted to ask more about it, but we both know it wasn’t a great time back then.” 

“You’re right. So what do you wanna know? Ask me ahead.” Rose clasped her fingers together looking too eager to know what has been playing around in my mind. 

“Can you explain to me more about climate change? I don’t really get what’s the buzz regarding climate change. It’s all over the Internet, from the news to social media, and yes, I know there are climate change strikes as well. The thing is I only know that it’s such a huge issue now but other than that, I don’t know,” I confessed. This is true, at least to me. People can spread awareness, but is it ever effective in inspiring action? After all, just because someone knows about climate changes doesn’t mean they’ll do anything about it.

Rose took a deep breath before she started explaining to me. “Climate change is a very complex topic. It is not a straightforward causal-and-effect relationship.”

“Then, what does climate change have to do with the bushfires that happened several months ago? I mean, I know our world is getting warmer and the four seasons kind of shifted earlier than it’s supposed to be. This and that, you know."

“That’s what everyone thinks when this climate change topic comes up. Oops, my mistake, not everyone but pretty much everyone. The thing about climate change is when the temperature gets hotter, the effects are wide-range. Things can go wrong with even the slightest temperature change from normal.” Rose calmly explained to me. 

“So you said the Earth is getting warmer? How much warmer is it now compared to before?” 

“It is expected there will be a 1.5°C  increase in global temperature between 2030-2050. It might not seem that much to you, but actually it is. The world is getting warmer a lot faster than it is before. That part is concerning. We might not be able to do anything if things happen faster than we can act on it, you know.” Rose replied jokingly. She looks like a carefree, go-with-the-flow kind of a person at first, but deep down inside she is a really passionate person.  

“When climate change happens, the future becomes uncertain. As I have said before, there are so many things that could go wrong when the Earth gets too hot. We do have climate models to simulate, let’s say the atmosphere, the ocean and the land. It has a similar concept to weather forecasting, but the difference is climate models look into the changes happening within several years, not hours. These models help us to anticipate what’s going to happen if the situation stays the same or gets worse in several years to come.” Rose further explained about the climate models. 

“Oh, climate models? That sounds cool. I have never really heard of it.” My cheeks suddenly became flushed; I got self-conscious after saying that out loud. I don’t want to show my ignorant side to Rose when it comes to this matter.

“That’s fine. Better late than never, right?” Rose winked at me. Her playful attitude washed all my embarrassment away; I’m really glad she didn’t mind my lack of knowledge at all. 

“From what we saw before, the blaze is only one of many effects of climate change. Also-” a buzz from Rose’s phone cut her sentence short.  

“Oh no, I’ve got a message from my husband. Our dinner date has been pushed forward. I’m afraid we only have several minutes before I gotta go.” Rose exclaimed apologetically. 

I just smiled and nodded slightly. “That’s totally fine with me. You can go now if you want to.” I said that just because I didn’t want to be a hindrance, but I wanted to ask Rose so much more. She has proved to be such a reliable source when it comes to these things. My questions will have to wait for a different time.

“Oh don’t say that. There’s no harm in me staying for another 10 minutes. Besides, you look like you still have more questions. Come on, go ahead and ask me.” Rose grinned and flashed her white teeth. 

Hearing this, I beamed with delight and could no longer hide my smile. Sensing my excitement, Rose simply raised her eyebrows. Waiting no more, I said, “you also mentioned how fire has been around in Australia for so long. Do you mean that fire is common around here?”

“You’re right! In fact, we have a fire season where the fire is more likely to break out for some period of time. It occurs at different seasons depending on the location. For example, here in New South Wales, the fire season started from winter to spring. It doesn’t mean fires won’t happen when it isn’t fire season though. Fires can happen anytime, but its probability of occurring drastically increases during certain parts of the year.” 

Rose explained energetically before continuing, “The most devastated states are the southeast part of Australia (the one we’re in now), New South Wales, and Victoria. It’s been especially hot and dry this year and definitely much more than last year. So much so that we actually broke the record for the highest temperature this year! As a result, there’s not much rain falling anymore. ” Rose sighed. 

“I couldn’t agree more. It is indeed hot here. Is that why the fire was more intense this time?” I asked. Hot and dry. Not a good combination indeed.

“Exactly! The fire season was more intense and lasted longer this time.”

“So, is it safe to say that the bushfires happening are triggered by climate change?”

“Yes, the climate change really does exacerbate the whole situation in Australia. Imagine pouring oil onto fires. That’s what climate change does to the bushfires happening here.” Rose added. 

“Look at how time flies. It’s been a nice chat with you, Mai. More questions are welcomed but not now. I will see you next Monday?” Rose finished the final sip and straightened up.

 

“Oh, yes. Of course. Thanks a lot for today. You’re such a sweetheart to me.” I winked at Rose as I said that. 

“Oh please.” Rose rolled her eyes. She’s not used to affection, but that won’t stop me from saying things that I really mean. 

Rose took her handbag as she started leaving, but about five steps in, she came back hurriedly. She frantically rummaged through her handbag and pulled out a leaflet. “I almost forgot that I have this leaflet with me. You can take this and read it. Okay, I’m going now for real. See you, Mai.” She waved her hands and headed to the exit door. Even when she was well outside the building, I saw her excitedly wave goodbye through the transparent glass window all the way until she disappeared from my view. 

She is one interesting mate. Just then, I remembered the leaflet she just left for me. Having the final sip of my hot chocolate, I reached the colourful leaflet and skimmed through it. Let’s see what we have here. 

“Climate risks: 1.5°C vs 2°C global warming.” I read the title out loud. This must be what Rose meant when she told me about the increasing global temperature. I admit it was a lot of information to digest. The effects varied from the arctic sea ice to humans. I also didn’t really get what it meant by the 2°C part. I assumed the consequences would be more immense when the temperature increased. That made sense. 

Oh, wait. There’s another one. I didn’t notice the other leaflet because it sort of stuck to the other one. This one was about how climate change affects bushfires. Great, Rose and I have talked about this as well. I began reading the content of the leaflet. 

“Longer fire seasons, hotter temperatures, drier vegetation and fuel, and more lightning,” I murmured to myself. We didn’t talk much about the lightning so that was a new piece of information for me. I wonder where Rose got these leaflets from? Did she bring these with her everywhere she goes?  Knowing her, I’m not surprised if that was the case. 

The evening sky had turned to molten brass. I also needed to get going now. It was getting late. I took the leaflet and put it into my bag. Stepping out from the cafe, the hot winds rolled from the south to my direction. On my way back home, I couldn’t help but think. The heat is indeed intense here in Australia due to heat waves. I wonder how it’s like in other countries. It’s just 2021 and it already feels this hot, so I can’t imagine how it is going to be many years from now. 

More things to ponder, I whispered to myself.  I don’t think the situation is going to improve if we don’t do anything about it. There must be something I can do. One small thing that could help this planet last for, I don’t know, perhaps another 300 years or so? Now I know what I’m going to do once I reach home. It’s crazy how I came to Australia just as a tourist, and now I’m staying as someone who can help. Despite my original opinions, I think I’m going to like it here just fine. You know, as long as that dumb internet joke about giant bugs isn’t real. 

The end

Thank you for reading. 

This is the link to the post-questionnaire: http://www.tinyurl.com/australianbushfiresfyp