Inside the Firestorm | Sunday, Feb. 7 at 8.30pm ABC1

This is the story of Australias most devastating bushfires. Twenty-four terrifying hours through the eyes of those who were there, the witnesses caught inside the firestorm that would re-write history and change all the rules.
On February 7, 2009, Australia suffered its most horrendous bushfires. Black Saturday claimed 173 lives in Victoria, left more than 7,000 homeless and destroyed close to half a million hectares of Victorian bushland. One year on, this is the story of what happened inside the firestorm.
Inside the Firestorm documents hour by hour the events that unfolded on that fateful day. It is a film of record a film that commemorates a catastrophe bravely told by some of the survivors. They tell their heart-breaking stories - some of miraculous survival, others of devastating loss of loved ones and property by the bushfires described by one eyewitness as a fire tornado.
Using CFA footage, eyewitness accounts, ABC 774 radio reports, photos and amateur footage, this documentary shows how these monster fires, exacerbated by hurricane-force winds, destroyed everything in their path. A firestorm so ferocious, it could kill from 200 metres.
Horrendous conditions on that day in Victoria were a recipe for disaster. Long term drought resulted in tinder dry fuel that was very easily ignited and very difficult to extinguish. This, combined with the summer heat wave and humidity under ten per cent provided optimal conditions for a fire. Victoria recorded its highest temperature on February 7. The mercury topped 48.8:C in the Mallee region. It is the highest temperature on record. Melbourne city reached 46.4:C also a record. Unofficially the temperatures were even higher.
By mid-afternoon fire crews and emergency services and personnel were stretched to breaking point. Hospitals prepared for the worst. By early evening, 90 fires raged across the State, ten were major and out of control. Towns had been obliterated, lives lost.
For those who survived this horrifying day, life must somehow go on.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• News
• Politics
• Inside
• the
• Firestorm
• black saturday
• victorian
• bushfires
• bushfire
• fire
• storm
• kinglake
• kinglake west
• marysville
• ballan
• bendigo
• wandong
• cfa
• wall of flames
• country fire authority

[hemhemimakatekobum]

Feel sorry for the people who lost loved ones. Hope this type of tragedy never happens again.

[crisss994]

@thesunsetreptiles australia and the US are almost the same size, australia is a lot more drier and warmer than the US. Anyway RIP was a horrible day no one will forget

[HrdRck]

Thesunsetreptiles is not the smartest tool in the shed, & Americans generally think they know everything, so just ignore him.

According to "Kinglake 350", which is a brilliant read, Australia is hit by approximately 55,000 bush fires every year, most of which are deliberately lit. Think about that number. It blows my mind.

For the benefit of Americans reading this, Australia is officially the most fire-prone country on Earth. Please don't move here. Please.

[Alk6239]

The news crews essentially advertised the fire threat to fire starters, "Hey guys, bad fire day, possibly the worst in recorded history" It's like advertising free food to some people.

[EyeOwnAmericansHD]

Damn, 3 years ago.

RIP

[defiant18]

y does every god damn vid have morans fighting over what was better, who has the worse fires who has the worst accidents who has the best military, who has the best car race, it doesn't matter what vid it is ppl will fight that there country is better or more extreme in sum way ffs get over it.

[thesunsetreptiles]

@MrBingdawg California gets them every year to. you guys dont get bad ones every year.

[thesunsetreptiles]

@KingyDaBom i fight wild fires dumb ass. and austrialia doesnt get the worst fires. you need to look into it. ive study brush fires all over the world. its gets hot hear to dumb ass. learn the facts before you start typing.

[baysidelad1]

@thesunsetreptiles....what fucking drugs are you smoking??? Australia gets the worst bushfires in the world....PERIOD......do your homework first.....

[AZZAROX420]

Scariest day/night of my life!!

[KingyDaBom]

@thesunsetreptiles

Are you an idiot, Australia has heaps worse fires than USA, and we have them all year, whenever it's hot here is a bush fire somewhere in Aus especially QLD and north NSW as well as Victoria as we just saw.