I'll go along with yabby's suggestion of
houses built out of bricks and Rob's bunker
suggestion.

As Rob said - It certainly wouldn't hurt to try.

Another good suggestion that was offered on the ABC
program, "Q and A," the other night. And that was
the Aboriginal method of bushcraft.

There is much that we could learn about caring for the land,
and what and how to do it from the Aboriginal culture.
Afterall they've been doing if for far longer, and have
the expertise that we could now use.

Why not ask and learn?

Foxy while I highlighted through out the thread Aboriginal people burnt the bush they did not build permanent homes inside the bush.
Earth in my view, underground bunkers, would be better than bricks.
Air however should be assured, fire entered that steel shed bunker via the same hole as the power.
Lets not get side tracked, do we truly think saving our lives but not our homes every so often is an option?
Do those very forests we love and the wildlife deserve better?
prevention saves life, homes, trees and the wildlife.
Do you want to know the outcome of the Royal commission?
here it is in part.
preventive burning recommended, even if volunteers are paid to do it.
Better fire trails more of them, burning some one year the other in closed blocks the next.
How do I know? every inquiry brings down the same recommendations, from 1939 till now.
Bunkers save humans but are no answer to fire storms are they?

Belly: 'Anansi maybe you too are part of the problem, sorry but just maybe.' How did you come to that conclusion?

Yes, I've seen slow burn-offs to reduce litter. Always glad to see them, because in ordinary circumstances they'd logically make a fire much more managable, though they do not prevent bush fires.

I've also hung on the phone on numerous occasions with the electricy company to clear the road along the power line. Though what they then do is push all the litter to the side and create lovely high piles of fuel on either side. And I've had bolt cutters handy to cut through the chained gate put up by said electricy company after an occasion when it became apparant that our bush fire brigade didn't have a key and had to walk down to inspect a fire. We (the neighbouring residents) weren't allowed a spare key as 'this is private property'.

I left living in the bush, because I may do the right thing, but that does not mean that the person down the street or companies with a presence in the bush will do the right thing.

We can create all sorts of government regulations laws and red tape, but it will not prevent city dwellers living on the cheaper housing fringes of the city being caught up in something like this again. Though, it would create jobs in the public sector to manage/maintain all the new laws and procedures in place.

The Australian bush is not like a lovely European forest. To think we can have an urban community in our bush set amongst the trees is dangerous. These fires happened to Melburnians, they happened to city people.

Instead of blaming, maybe we need a change of mindset. For starters, everybody can take responsibility.

ColR, you yourself are one of the few posters on OLO wallowing in the shallow end of the gene pool. Flinging around emotional opinions that contribute very, very little.

Is Mise, point taken.

On another issue, I said earlier that a fire bunker should have a metal door. Since then, I've been made aware of the magnitude of the radiant heat of a fullblown bushfire.

Obviously, the best soultion there would be a door which was not flammable AND which has a low conductance of heat. I don't know what would work best. A person at work said a door filled with asbestos would be the best option. Although, this might create other problems later once the door gets old and starts to fall apart.

Dear Belly,

I'm sorry, I meant to acknowledge what you've
been saying all along on this thread.

I'm sure that this time the State Government
will pay attention to the findings of the
Royal Commission.

I doubt any bush fire fighter who has served more than one year, thinks burning in controlled bush cold weather, stops bush fires.
See my quote that we need to look for second fires weeks after the first, after leaves and bark falls.
We do not need to watch these tragic fires, it was a fire storm, the leaves green or not blew in front of the fire and no longer exist.
Reducing the fuel, in controlled burns, stops fire storms, stops tree top burning hell in the wind fire storms.
Fire loves slopes, it rushes up them far too hot to stop look if you get a chance at the fire approaching that house that had a cargo container as a bunker.
See the clear ground, it was well prepared for fire, so was the owner, yet inside his bunker he saw fire come in via a hole maybe 25mm round?
Either bunkers long entrances turns in them, non flammable door but air?
Have you breathed air from a pumped up truck tube?
Foxy regards, my fear is we have not followed actions proposed by inquiry's before.
We MUST not let extremist conservationists control policy's that may well have killed far more than 300, and will kill more next summer.
Bunkers save not one tree, one home, one animal, prevention is the answer.