P6 the HumanitarianstickingtogetherJules the dog is happy to be reunited with her owner Jae Lovelace after she escaped the horrific fires in Strathewen with the McKenzie family.Photo: <strong>Australian</strong> <strong>Red</strong> <strong>Cross</strong>/Rodney Dekker
March 2009 P7The tiny township of Strathewen is allbut gone except for the chimneys ofsome of the 40 homes and theeucalyptus trees that stand defiant overthe blackened landscape. There were200 people living in the communitynestled on the fringe of Kinglake andnow over 40 are dead.Here is the story of how one family, a fewfriends and three dogs managed toescape the inferno.On 7 February, the hottest day on recordfor Victoria, the biggest concern for theMcKenzie family was how to keep cool.Brothers Dylan (21) and Leigh (22) invitedsome friends around for a swim in theirpool and were happily having a fewdrinks and laughs when the first of thefire embers started spitting on them inthe pool.‘We weren’t too worried then. We’ve beenevacuated before, but usually you get atwo-hour warning. We had been told thatWhittlesea was under threat, but thenflames started coming over the hill, thenspot fires started on our neighbourspaddock. It crept up on us so quickly, therewas no warning...that’s when we realisedwe were in trouble,’ recounts Leigh.‘We could hear the fire roaring and itsounded like a jet plane. It was likenothing I’ve heard before.’It was then that the McKenzie’s and theirfriends began to panic. ‘When the powerwent out, we just went in the housegrabbed a handful of what we could andthen left in five cars. In total, fiveMcKenzies and seven of their friends,plus three dogs piled into the cars.On the way, they ran into their neighbourswho had inconveniently run out of petrol,so they too crammed into the cars asDylan (left) and his brother Leigh McKenzie lost their family home inStrathewen, but their entire family survived along with three dogs,including their friend’s dog Jules. Photo: <strong>Australian</strong> <strong>Red</strong> <strong>Cross</strong>/Rodney Dekkerthey made an attempted escape out ofStrathewen.When they got to Kinglake, however,everything was blocked off, so they hadno choice but to take refuge in abuilding. They ran into the café on themain road that was just across the roadfrom the hardware store and the petrolstation. There were 20 people in the caféincluding the McKenzie clan.‘Shortly after we got to the café, thehardware store caught on fire and then thepetrol station went up. Everything wentblack and it turned to night. There werered embers everywhere. Everyone startedcrying. I thought I was dead,’ recalls Dylan.But somehow, they managed to survivethe night lying low, with wet towels on theirfaces. The windows were too hot to touchor even stand near from a foot away.When the McKenzie’s and their friends leftthe café in the morning, the petrol stationwas still burning (and continued to burnfor 24 hours) and every house waslevelled from Kinglake to Whittlesea. Theyarrived at the recovery centre in Whittleseaand experienced a sense of relief, if onlytemporarily. ‘From coming from nothing tosome food, socks and jocks was a greatthing. We registered with <strong>Red</strong> <strong>Cross</strong> andthen got a bite to eat. It’s what you want isto find some friendly people who want tohelp out,’ explains Dylan.For Jules, one of the dogs who wasrescued, her greatest relief was beingreunited with her owner Jae Lovelace,a friend of the brothers. The smileon the dog’s face is a welcome sightand momentarily helps one to forgetthe tragedy that everyone has justexperienced.by Janine GrayPsychologicalsupport- the next step to recoveryAs recovery efforts get underway inthe areas hardest hit by the bushfires,there is a strong need to be aware ofthe longer-term psychological and socialimpacts, says Dr Rob Gordon, consultantpsychologist to <strong>Red</strong> <strong>Cross</strong>.‘Emergencies by their very nature aredisruptive and can be extremelystressful. And situations like theVictorian bushfires, which have hadsuch an enormous impact, willcertainly have an effect on a largeportion of the population,’ he says.There are a range of emotions thatpeople may be feeling after a majorcrisis, including shock and disbelief,numbness, fear, helplessness and angeror frustration. Many of these feelings willnot be present immediately, and indeedsome may take months or even years tobe fully experienced.‘People should also remember to lookafter their physical state,’ says Dr Gordon.‘The health of the body as well as themind can be directly affected by theevent, with difficulty sleeping, musculartension, weight gain or loss and inabilityto concentrate are all common physicalreactions.’<strong>Red</strong> <strong>Cross</strong> has a number of resources toassist people affected by emergencies,including a booklet on how to cope witha major personal crisis, and podcastsdiscussing how to deal with the stress ofan emergency and how to help out afterone has occurred.If you would like assistanceplease visit www.redcross.org.auand follow the links toEmergency REDiPlan.
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