Warren Truss (Wide Bay, National Party, Leader of the Nationals) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to support this condolence motion with the same feelings of shock, sadness and horror that are undoubtedly shared with everyone in this House and indeed all Australians. Even Dorothea Mackellar, the woman who captured the contrasting nature of rural Australia as no-one has done before or since, would most likely have been lost for words today as she tried to explain the horror that has struck her country, my country, our country over these last few days. Amidst the beauty and the wonder of our country, it can also be harsh and cruel. How can the idyllic landscapes also become killing fields?

No-one expected the horror of Victoria’s Black Friday in 1939. No-one thought it could happen again until Ash Wednesday struck with greater ferocity and death in 1983. ‘Never again,’ people said on that occasion. But, of course, tragically, we now know that it can happen again with greater power and loss of life—and in fact it has. This is the worst natural disaster in Australia’s recorded history in terms of lives lost and dwarfs any other peacetime disaster in its sheer scale and heartbreak. It came upon the communities with frightening speed. It crept up on the nation without warning. Earlier reports on Saturday suggested there may not have been any loss of life, but as the evening wore on we all fervently hoped that the rising death toll would be contained at levels that were already far too high. Today, with Victoria still burning and destroyed homes, businesses, cars and bushland still to be explored, we still do not know what the final loss of life will be. I am told the latest report as of a few minutes ago is that the death toll is now confirmed to be 128, and there may in fact be more.

One thing that I do know today is that Australian resilience will again come to the fore. The towns like Kinglake, Marysville, Narbethong, Callignee and Corinella will be rebuilt. Buildings can of course rise again and, as earlier speakers have said, can be rebuilt even with greater grandeur. Those who survived the weekend were born and bred in these places or they were born elsewhere and chose to live there and have grown to love these beautiful towns and communities. Most will want to stay and build their homes in spite of the heartbreak and the hardship and their businesses and their lives will be resumed.

As our population has drifted over the past decades to the cities and to the coast, Australians have retained our love, our attachment and our admiration for the bush and we cling to it wherever we can. What I think many of us in this place do not always understand is the attachment to the land that is felt by many country Australians. What they will do and what hardships they will endure to maintain that link are a precious part of Australia’s heritage. There might be some in the coming days who will ask why people live in areas that are bushfire prone. I say in reply: they are doing things that are important—important for them and important for their country. It is not bloody-mindedness; these are their homes. That is what is important to them and to their family—and, if it is important to them and them and their family, it is important to our nation.

The first priority is of course to extinguish the fires that still seriously threaten lives and buildings. Hopefully, the change of weather will mean that the worst is behind us. But, for the survivors, a new struggle is already on. I strongly support the measures announced today, and any other existing government measures, to ensure that the people in fire-ravaged Victoria can rebuild. We must stand ready to offer any further measures that may be needed to ensure that, at the appropriate time, after the mourning, reconstruction can start promptly. The short-term assistance that the government has offered will need to stretch into long-term assistance. I am sure that the three levels of government will do whatever is needed and that, once again, the generosity of the Australian people will come to the fore.

The federal member for Gippsland, Darren Chester, has remained in his electorate today to offer whatever support he can to the people in his communities. I spoke to him just an hour or so ago—and 21 of the confirmed deaths are in the Gippsland area. Whilst there has been quite a lot of media attention given to the fires around Churchill, in the plantation timber forests and in other areas, it is the little hamlets of Calignee and Corinella that have been particularly harshly hit. These little communities, near Traralgon, still have fires burning around them. He reminded me also of the people of Boolarra, where 30 homes were destroyed in a much less reported fire just last week. Last Friday the local radio station launched an appeal and raised $100,000 locally for the people of Boolarra. Many of the people who gave to that appeal now need much more themselves. We think very much, and with gratitude, of those people who are working hard to maintain the spirit of the local communities and to start planning for rebuilding.

The member for Gippsland told me some miraculous stories of people who have survived, and of others who seemed to be well-prepared but were just overwhelmed. He spoke of people standing in front of their destroyed homes, their lost businesses, their lost possessions, in shock and disbelief, but saying: ‘We’re the lucky ones; we’re alive.’ He also spoke—and I refer to the matters raised by the Attorney-General—of a building anger if reports that these fires were deliberately lit prove to be true. How could there be any Australian who would do such a thing? The whole nation has every right to rise in horror at the actions of people who respond in this way. The member for Gippsland also mentioned the emergency crews, the community workers and the councils, who are doing all they possibly can to ensure that the immediate needs of the people are being met.

Through the work of so many people on the ground helping the victims today, they can be assured that all Australians are thinking of them. At times like these they are not alone. The rest of Australia has begun to respond and help financially. The official appeals have begun and members of parliament are launching their own appeals. I am sure that this is one way in which we can all demonstrate our commitment to our fellow Australians at this time—those who are suffering a particular difficulty. The horror that these people have been through cannot in any full sense be shared with others, but we can offer them our loyalty, our support, our love, our care and our commitment for the future. We think especially of the injured—and many of them are seriously injured. We think of the doctors and nurses who are caring for them. We think of the loss of property. We think of the firefighters, the emergency workers, the police and the armed forces, who are doing so much to provide assistance at this vital time. We think of the counsellors and the people providing moral courage and support to so many in need. I stand with the others who have spoken before me, and with those who will speak afterwards and those who will not have an opportunity to speak today but feel the same things in their hearts. Fellow Australians who have been dreadfully struck by these events: you are not alone. All Australians are with you and we will help you in the years ahead.

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