FIRES 2006-2007

IT HAS BEEN A LONG HOT

AND DRY SUMMER!

During the recent fires there were a number of reported losses of huts in the Victorian high country, including the highest profile hut in Australia, Craig’s hut at Mt Stirling, built for the iconic movie The Man from Snowy River as depicted in the Banjo Paterson poem of the same name, and we lament the loss of all cultural and heritage icons of our past, both European and Indigenous.

During the 2003 fires some 65 huts were lost, and the Association has worked very hard for the last four years to preserve the rich history of Victoria as associated with the remaining 200 high country huts - cattleman’s huts, miner’s huts and cottages, homesteads, ski huts, bush-walker’s huts, and refuge huts of every shape and description, as well as some unique huts such as the Flying Swagman in the Corryong area and the Underground hut at Yackandandah.

We put our trust in the work of the last three years and can report that although the fires of 2006-07 were more extensive than 2003 it would appear our huts have faired much better.

An indication of the extent of the fires is encapsulated in the inability of the webmasters of the NSW bushfire website to describe the extent of Victoria’s fires… “To date the area covered by these fires is over 1,000,000 ha (big)” (http://www.bushfire.nsw.gov.au/dsp_more_info.cfm?CON_ID=4316&CAT_ID=684, accessed 18 January 2007)

HUTS LOST

We can now confirm the loss of the following huts in the recent bushfires across Victoria.  There may be others lost in the more remote areas but as access is still restricted and the fire season is not yet over it may be some time before we know the full extent of the fire damage.  (Land tenure: PV = Parks Victoria, DSE = Dept Sustainability & Environment, PP= Private Property)

Licola Area

Pinnacles (PV), Snowy Range airfield hut (PV), Traralgon high school camp (PV).

Baw Baw Area

Christians hut Mt Selma (DSE).

Howqua Area

Bluff (PV), Craig’s (DSE), Howfield Refuge Pikes Flat, Mt No. 3 Refuge (DSE), Ritchie’s (PV).

Barry Mountains Area

Cropper Creek (DSE), Dandongadale (DSE), Ryan's (PP).

Bogong/Hotham Area

Blair’s Simmonds Gap (DSE), Weston’s (PV).