subject: Fighting City Fires Also Has A Long And Troubled History In Australia [print this page] Fighting city fires also has a long and troubled history. Cities used to be just as dangerous for fires as was the bush. Many buildings were made out of wood and so caught fire easily. People lived in cramped conditions and so flames could jump from one building to another. Nineteenth-century theatres were lit by gas, itself a fire hazard. People were allowed to smoke pipes and so could accidentally set light to the place. Homes were illuminated by candles (often homemade) and these were a fire hazard. For example, on a summer night the window might be open and a sudden change in the wind could rustle the curtains and suddenly they would be alight. Vibram Five Fingers Many children were burned to death by a fire that caught on the window drapes. Similarly, the crinoline dresses of fashionable nineteenth-century women could brush up against a candle which would set their dress ablaze.
Fire fighting in the city was a difficult process. For many of the early years of European settlement, water supply in cities was inadequate. Fire fighting locally was not coordinated. News of a fire was often slow in reaching a fire brigade and the team could only respond as fast as the horse-drawn vehicle could move. Sydney's Metropolitan Fire Brigade one of the world's oldest and largest was established on February 14, 1884. Australia enjoys an enviable international image partly based on its rural locations and stunning environment. Yes: it is a wonderful country with much to see. It is the world's oldest continent and its Indigenous Peoples are the world's oldest continuous civilization. But under all the glamour there is a curious ambivalence. The bushfires have been a reminder just how dangerous that environment can be. There is a deeper ambivalence towards the environment. First, while all the main locations are named after distinguished Britons (and some Frenchmen), Australia also has a 'map of misery':' some of the locations are named by Europeans to reflect how they felt at the time. There are forty-five 'Mount Miserys' dotted around Australia, a Mount Carnage, Mount Destruction and Cape Grim. There are also Useless Loop, Hell's Gate and Lake Massacre. Even Captain Cook got into the act he named Cape Tribulation in northern Queensland in his frustration with his ship's navigational problems. Second, most Australians have little direct personal link with rural life. The European colonization of Australia began in 1788, shortly after Captain Cook's visit. Some early pioneers made a lot of money out of farming and mining. But in terms of the bulk of the population, most people from around 1900 onwards (at least) lived in urban settings. Australian writers and poets romanticized the bush. But they hardly went there. It was essentially a marketing decision: other countries also had big cities like Melbourne and Sydney. Australia's unique selling point in literary terms was 'the bush'. That remains the case today, with only a small though important percentage of the population growing food or mining. Most Australians are insulated from the rural environment.
Bushfires are therefore a reminder of the pleasantness and comparative safety of Vibram FiveFingers living in the city despite its crime and grime. Of course, this may now start to change if the speculation over climate change is correct and Australia's environmental situation like that in the rest of the world becomes more fraught.
by: allanleelovemonica
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