purplesweat said:

does your family have valuables and irreplaceables packed and ready to go?

ZombieKitten said:

Sorry, I meant the suburb the woman took the photo from, Doncaster.

That photo was taken last saturday, i think the fires gone down since then...well, there's been no warnings for us out here so...
[Edited 2/11/09 4:32am]

Some latest...

On Wednesday night, the death toll from Saturday's vicious fires stood at 181, but with identification experts making their way into devastated regions, the count has slowed before an expected rise beyond 300.

Fire authorities said the official tally of houses destroyed was more than 1,000. Some 5,000 people are homeless, and 1,100 square miles of land has been scorched.

More than a million native animals may have perished in Victoria's fire inferno, a wildlife expert says


And still, the fires continue to burn

chillichocaholic said:

i so hope they are proven wrong the loss of life and utter destruction is incomprehensible. the hospitals must be full of burn victims, no?

LilMissy is doing fine...

MagnificentVoodoo said:

Has everyone seen the drinking koala?

Baby born after parents flee bushfires
February 12, 2009, 5:45 am

A New Zealand woman has given birth to a baby boy just hours after fleeing the deadly bushfires in Victoria.

Caspar Alexander Densem was born at noon (AEDT)on Sunday in Shepparton, north of Melbourne , after his parents were forced to flee the flames that have so far killed more than 180 people, The Press newspaper in Christchurch reported on Thursday.

Former Christchurch residents Jonathan Densem, 39, and his wife, Emma Smetham, 40, decided to flee their home in Buxton on Saturday night.

Densem said he spent two hours on Saturday clearing gutters, running hoses and wetting everything down.

"All that time I was going, `Hmm, I don't know about this'," he said.

"I decided I didn't like it, it looked too angry. And just at that moment, the fire crested the ridge about a kilometre from our house."

Densem told his pregnant wife, his three-year-old son Otto and his parents-in-law, who were visiting from Christchurch, that they had to leave.

They tried to drive to Melbourne so they would have access to medical care in case Smetham went into labour, but nearly every road was closed.

Instead, they drove to a Shepparton hotel, arriving exhausted and covered in dirt at 11pm on Saturday.

Smetham went into labour about 2am and the couple's second son was born at noon on Sunday.

"That was the only thing that had no drama," Densem said.

He had no idea when his family would be able to return to their Buxton home, but he had been told it was still standing.
[Edited 2/11/09 16:22pm]

wow and congrats

OMG! This is awful. Are any of our orgers close to any of these fires. Please stay safe!!

ZombieKitten said:

ZombieKitten do you live close to the fires??? If so please take care.

kpowers said:

I'm about 44 minutes drive from the nearest one

ZombieKitten said:

i think there a blaze near narrewarren. we don't have a warning here so

missmad said:

that's about 50 mins away from here

chillichocaholic said:

stay safe Jess

ZombieKitten said:

stay safe all Vic orgers

did anyone see orlando bloom on the telethon last nite




what a nice man

i didnt know he was a Pom

remember to shop at coles today!!!

ZombieKitten said:

i usually go to woollies, but not today!

prb said:

and buy up everything you might need soon, dunny rolls etc

ZombieKitten said:

i did a big shop last week.

but im sure i can find something to buy

prbchecksherbankbalance

prb said:

I reckon they should donate every cent, not JUST the profit

ZombieKitten said:

i suppose even they have to pay wages/overheads etc.

profits should be a fair amount though.

it will be interesting to see.

prb said:

I reckon they got tons of money, they rip off all the farmers!

ZombieKitten said:

[Edited 2/12/09 17:19pm]

ZombieKitten said:

same here, not far im in chelsea. where r u again hun?

prb said:

yea hes english, didn't know either.

missmad said:

up past moorabbin

prb said:

th ey said they'll be donating All funds, now whether than means just prfits or everything from today. who knows