On February 4, 2003 the Senate supported a condolence motion to the families that lost loved ones during the firestorm in Canberra on 18 January 2003.

Later, I had an opportunity to speak again on the subject during the Adjournment debate.

Senator LUNDY  (Australian Capital Territory) (2.43 p.m.) --I rise in support of this motion. As the other senator from the ACT, I too am deeply saddened to find myself speaking to this motion of condolence. There has been immense personal loss and emotional torment experienced by many people in the ACT and elsewhere in Australia as the fires continue to ravage this land. The experience felt by many Canberrans on that day is something that they have conveyed to me cannot be described. It has not been experienced before by many of the firefighters or by those who had to face the fire on the day. The magnitude, the heat and the ferocity of the fire that took place was something beyond imagination.

I want to take the time to reinforce that point today because, if you visit the ravaged areas of Canberra, you can see what that fire left, but you cannot get a sense of just what happened and how quickly it happened. Over 600 homes were destroyed and 530 of those, as we know, were in Canberra. Around the country, seven people have died in the fires and four of those were here in Canberra on Saturday, 18 January. Alison Tener, aged 38, of Duffy, was the mother of three boys: Simon, Jason and Adam. Her husband David and her boys said that Mrs Tener gave of herself to help others and that she was the `best mummy' a kid could hope for. She loved her family and spending time together on Sunday picnics, having pizza on Friday nights and those wonderful simple family things that meant so much to her.

Dorothy McGrath, aged 83, of the Stromlo Forestry Settlement, is survived by her daughter, three grandchildren, five sisters and two brothers. Known to her neighbours as Dolly, she was a quiet, elderly woman who loved her dogs and who lost her life fighting to save her home. Mrs McGrath died, overcome by smoke, in the front yard of her home as she tried desperately to hose down her property. All but three homes in the small community in which she lived were lost.

Doug Fraser, aged 61, of Duffy, was the loving father of three, Wendy, Robyn and David; grandfather of Oliver and Emma, who was born just four days before the tragedy; and husband to Anne. He died whilst trying to protect his house in Burrendong Street, Duffy. He had very strong community connections, having given his time as the treasurer of the Weston Creek Wildcats, a local junior AFL club.

Peter Brooke, aged 73, of Duffy, was a retired Sydney businessman who died when his son's Duffy home was consumed by fire. Mr Brooke was a retired engineer and had moved to Canberra with his wife, Beverley, to be closer to his son Gary. Mr Brooke was a very keen gardener and cooking connoisseur who made good use of his home-grown vegetables.

The stories of these people whose lives were lost, and also the stories of many of the survivors, will continue to make the sense of tragedy very real to so many Canberrans. There were those of us who were not part of it, who just saw the smoke and the fires. Like many others, I was travelling home from the coast that day, and I drove into Canberra and saw the extraordinarily red sky. It was almost pitch black because the lights were out in so many suburbs. It was a horrifying day for those people directly affected, and those watching and listening expressed their fear.

I, like my colleague Senator Reid, would like to acknowledge those on the day who took a hands-on approach to what was happening. I refer to the crew at Triple 6. I mention in particular Leanne Scott, who was out on the scene, taking reports, putting them to air and providing very practical advice which, I believe, saved lives on that day. I acknowledge the role subsequently played by the media as they came together in order to provide a conduit for information and get the messages out from the ACT government. The ACT government have done everything possible and everything right in responding to this disaster, and as we now move into a recovery phase. They have channelled information through the media in order to get it to the people in need. I also mention the efforts of the FM stations, Mix 106.3 and FM 104.7, who conducted a radiothon last week because their staff wanted to do something tangible and meaningful. They raised tens of thousands of dollars by calling for donations from around Canberra.

There are many more stories of heroism that I am not able to refer to today. I also acknowledge Mike Castle, Peter Lucas-Smith, John Murray, Ian Bennett, and particularly my colleagues in the ACT Assembly, who have done an incredible job not only in responding to the disaster but in pulling together in what will be an extensive recovery phase.

Finally, I extend thanks on behalf of everyone affected to the emergency service workers--the firies, the ambulance officers, the police. Everybody came together and did the best job that they could in order to save lives. Hopefully, lessons have been learnt and we will now move on and be more prepared if we are confronted with such a tragedy ever again.

Adjournment - ACT Bushfire tragedy

6 February 2003

Senator LUNDY  (Australian Capital Territory) (7.31 p.m.) --First of all, I would like to associate myself with the comments made by Senator Ferris earlier this evening in the adjournment debate in relation to the passing of Bruce Juddery. Tonight I would like to continue my comments on the bushfire situation and the devastation that occurred in Canberra. While I have taken the opportunity so far this week to reflect upon the incredible goodwill, energy and effort made on behalf of the people of Canberra, I do feel compelled to come in and reflect on the not so positive aspects of the aftermath of that disaster.

Earlier this week we passed a condolence motion in this chamber regarding the devastating bushfires, fires which are unfortunately still raging in some parts of New South Wales and Victoria. I find it quite abhorrent that New South Wales coalition senator Senator Tierney has used the devastation of the bushfire crisis in these areas to promote the political agenda of his New South Wales tory mates. In the Senate chamber yesterday Senator Tierney flung spurious statements while seeking to vilify national park advocates and environmentalists and drive a wedge between them and the forest industries in what I think was quite a disgraceful political stunt. I am glad Senator Tierney has come back into the chamber, because I am responding to his comments of yesterday.

This stunt by Senator Tierney follows the untimely comments made in the aftermath of the fires by the Minister for Regional Services, Territories and Local Government, Wilson Tuckey, and forest industry spokesperson, Kate Carnell, who quite simple-mindedly rushed to advocate the clearing of Australia's forests as somehow being a solution and to criticise national park management as being the cause. Senator Tierney had the audacity in his speech to say that he could not understand why firefighters go out and fight fires under these circumstances. This flies in the face of efforts by ACT and New South Wales firefighters and emergency services personnel who risked their lives to protect homes on the outer edges of Canberra. The fact is that there is no simple answer to the issue of fuel reduction burning, because of the diversity of forests, topography and climate in Australia and the priorities and land management issues, which of course include the protection of life and property as well as biodiversity.

As the Labor shadow minister for the environment, Kelvin Thomson, pointed out: if the Howard government ministers seriously believe the answer to bushfires is to cut down or burn our forests first, we had better hope that there is a good export market for salt, because excessive land clearing will turn Australia into one big salt mine. As well, we have been assailed by the gratuitous, spiteful and petty attacks by Paddy McGuiness in the Sydney Morning Herald, made incredibly immediately following the devastation of the firestorms. Everyone who has been in Canberra in the last few weeks would resent his I think quite pathetic desire and statements to abolish not only the ACT government but the ACT as well. I think he is a joke. What happened here has conclusively demonstrated Canberra's vast stock of social capital or civic spirit--whatever term you would like to use. It is obviously not a concept understood by the very cynical Mr McGuiness.

We have also seen local Liberals Brendan Smyth and Steve Pratt, opposition members in the ACT assembly, not being able to resist some unworthy political point scoring in seeking to alarm and blame. Brendan Smyth has been quick to raise what he calls his concerns around budget problems in increased costs and levies to Canberra, and Steve Pratt has rushed to blame environmental activists. Residents of Canberra do not wish for their misfortunes to be played off as political stunts, which is exactly the game that Liberal members, both ACT and federal, seem to be playing. Clearly, comments by these individuals at such a time are misguided, and I have to say that, unfortunately, they seem to be organised. Consistent themes are emerging both from New South Wales representatives and from ACT representatives that show a concerted effort. If they had a genuine interest in how the bushfires could have been averted, and will be averted in the future, then they should contribute constructively to the coronial inquests and bushfire review that have been announced by Chief Minister Jon Stanhope and not engage in insulting victims and emergency service workers by using this tragedy as a stunt. I think there is an opportunity for the coalition senators in this place, and indeed local Liberals, to take a lesson of leadership out of Margaret Reid's book.

Labor has released a national bushfire strategy that encompasses national plans for preparedness and response and recovery from the ravages of bushfires. Labor's strategy takes a proactive approach to dealing with bushfires and outlines the need for a national commitment. In the ACT, the coronial inquest and the broad review announced by the Chief Minister will ask the necessary questions and get answers. Much work now has to be done on the recovery process. I would like to conclude this evening by saying that to use the crisis and loss in this way will only lower the view of the Liberal Party in the eyes of the ACT electorate.