Bushfires

Question 1

grass fires

Answer 1

• Mainly on grazing, farming or remote scrub country
• Destroy fences, livestock and buildings and result in loss of life
• Can travel at speeds of up to 10km/h

Question 2

forest fires

Answer 2

• Woodlands and forests, isolated mountain environments
• Often destroy homes and settlements
• Rapid heating of forest fuels can create flames which can flare up to three times the height of the forest
• Dense smoke can hide the fire front

Question 3

ground fire

Answer 3

• underground fire in which burning peat, coal or tree roots ignite

Question 4

surface fire

Answer 4

• Low-to-high-intensity fire burning the surface litter, grass and shrub layers

Question 5

crown fire

Answer 5

• Very high-intensity fire, spreading rapidly through the crown or canopy of trees, especially when fuelled by strong winds

Question 6

climate

Answer 6

Particular regions are more fire-prone due to the amount of rainfall and average temperatures

Question 7

temperature

Answer 7

Hot, dry weather will dry fuel and encourage fire to spread especially during long dry spells

Question 8

wind

Answer 8

Dry winds can feed a fire, increase its speed, dry fuel and spread and carry embers which cause spot fires

Question 9

topography

Answer 9

Fires burn faster up steep, forested slopes as flames can reach more unburnt fuel and radiant heat pre-heats higher fuel

Question 10

fuel load

Answer 10

Large amounts of dry, flammable fuel such as grasses, leaf litter and scrub increase the magnitude of the fire

Question 11

speed and slope fact

Answer 11

• For every 10 degree increase in slope, a fire will double its speed

Question 12

Black Saturday- environment facts

Answer 12

• 7 Feb 2009
• NNW winds before SW change at approx. 6pm (gusts up to 150-200km per hour) (caused an 80km front)
• 11 consecutive days of 30 plus heat
• Jan 2009, 0.6mm of rain fell
• 12-year drought
• 10% humidity
• Thick layer of leaves and twigs on the ground

Question 13

Black Saturday- after

Answer 13

• 1 million animals killed
• 1.1 million acres of land was burnt
• Produced equivalent amount of energy to 1,500 Hiroshima atomic bombs
• 50% of community left

Question 14

Black Saturday- human

Answer 14

• Destroyed 2,100 homes
• Displaced 7,562 people
• 173 killed, 414 injured
• PTSD, depression, anxiety, survivors’ guilt, substance abuse, grief
• Described as a massive hurricane of wind, fire, heat, ash

Question 15

Kinglake- location

Answer 15

• Located 56km north0east of Melbourne’s CBD in Victoria, Australia
• By car, it’s a 1 hour and 15-minute drive from Melbourne CBD
• Farmland, forest, national park and townships

Question 16

Kinglake

Answer 16

• Speed increased as it made its way up the 60-70-degree slope of the mountain
• Completely destroyed