The Upper Yarra Fire #12 erupted on Ash Wednesday, 16 February 1983, on the slopes of Mount Little Joe near Millgrove at 7.20 pm and quickly progressed under the influence of the strong north westerly wind. Also often known as the Warburton or Powelltown Fire, it was first spotted by Jon Gwilt in the Briarty’sContinue reading “Ash Wednesday 1983 – Warburton.”
Monthly Archives: July 2022
Donald Stewart Thomson.
Is Don… Is Wood… Don to many, and Thommo to just about everyone else, Don Thomson was a timber man, and a legendary forester’s forester. Thommo was born in Lilydale on 25 March 1942 and his earliest years were spent with his grandmother on a poultry farm in Bayswater, while his father Norm served inContinue reading “Donald Stewart Thomson.”
Ash Wednesday 1983 – Cockatoo.
Cockatoo is a small village nestled into the southern foothills of the Dandenong Ranges were the suburbs meets the bush. Narrow gravel roads and modest fibro homes characterised the settlement. The Cockatoo fire began late afternoon at 7.28 pm on Ash Wednesday 16 February 1983, about four hours after the blaze at Belgrave South. ItContinue reading “Ash Wednesday 1983 – Cockatoo.”
Ash Wednesday 1983 – Belgrave / Upper Beaconsfield.
On Ash Wednesday 16 February 1983, at 3.24 pm, a bushfire started on Birds Land near Mount Morton Road at Belgrave Heights. There had been concerns expressed in the months before the fire about the fuel loads by the CFA to the local Sherbrooke council which owned the block. The temperature at 2.00 pm atContinue reading “Ash Wednesday 1983 – Belgrave / Upper Beaconsfield.”
Ash Wednesday 1983 – Otways.
A day of Total Fire Ban (TFB) was declared for Victoria at 06.30 am on Ash Wednesday, 16 February 1983. Forests Commission Victoria (FCV) firetowers at Peters Hill, Crowes and Mt. Cowley were up early from 09.00 am in expectation of a bad day, and all crews were in their depots on standby. Under provisionsContinue reading “Ash Wednesday 1983 – Otways.”
Ash Wednesday – 1983, East Trentham & Macedon.
A day of Total Fire Ban (TFB) was declared for Victoria at 06.30 am on Ash Wednesday 16 February 1983, and Forests Commission Victoria (FCV) crews were kept close to the depot at Trentham with the intent that everyone would be back in the yard by midday. Peter Brown was the Trentham District Forester andContinue reading “Ash Wednesday – 1983, East Trentham & Macedon.”
Picnic at Hanging Rock.
Two weeks before Ash Wednesday, on Tuesday 1 February 1983, the weather forecast was for a very hot day with temperatures of 41 degrees and windy conditions. The CFA declared a Total Fire Ban (TFB). A fire, which many believed had been deliberately lit, broke out at 12:49 pm just north of the Macedon RangesContinue reading “Picnic at Hanging Rock.”
Victoria’s Forests & Bushfire Heritage 