Looking Forward Looking Back : Memories of the Black Summer Bushfires 2021

As we head into the first period in 50  years that the Koala Hospital Port Macquarie will be closed for a significant amount of time (apart from COVID lockdown closures), we’re sharing some of the stories and memories that have shaped the journey. And as we’re currently recognising the 5th anniversary of the Black Summer Bushfires and the devastating impact on our wildlife, and koalas, we wanted to reflect on, and share, this piece by our volunteers who were on the front line of rescue during this time. 
This blog was first shared in March 2021.

A year ago, the worst bushfire season in living memory brought death and destruction on a horrific scale to Australian wildlife and the environment across New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and Queensland. 

‘There was nothing left, I had never seen landscape like it’, volunteer Peter Berecry reflected. 

Here at the Port Macquarie Koala Hospital, we operated over capacity for three months, with all volunteers and staff working desperately hard to rescue and treat injured koalas. Today, we are grateful that since then, we have been able to release many healthy koalas back to the wild, where coastal rains meant forests had started to regenerate. 

A few koalas from the fires still remain in our care. We mourn the many koalas, like millions of other wild animals and birds in Australia, who did not survive last fire season. This sad and sobering time will never be forgotten by anyone at the Koala Hospital. 
But for a particular group, our bushfire search and rescue volunteers, their memories remain particularly stark and poignant. The Koala Hospital has carried out search and rescue following bushfires for more than 30 years, and we continue to review and improve our protocols. These days, all our bushfire search and rescue volunteers have up-to-date certificates in Bushfire Awareness Training, a course operated by the New South Wales Rural Fire Service. Volunteer, Jeremy Bear, described how previous project work on remote sites, as well as koala rescue experience in Port Macquarie, meant search and rescue was the most useful way he could contribute.

Jeremy remembers, ‘It was tragic though, at times heart-rending – long days of gruelling, physically draining and mentally exhausting work’. 

However well-prepared you are, working in a fireground is confronting. The sight and smell of the devastated forest and bush is sickening. Volunteer, Peter Berecry, explains, ‘In some areas, the fires had left literally nothing – no trees, no plants, no animals or birds, even insects. I had never seen a landscape like it’.

Our volunteers contend with heat, hazardous, broken terrain and ‘hot spots’, where fire may still be burning underground. There is a real likelihood that branches will fall from burnt and damaged trees. Rescuers wear thick, protective suits, heavy boots and hard hats; they carry packs and drinking water, as they methodically search firegrounds, constantly scanning the trees and remaining alert to their surroundings. Rescues can be hard, as the team work together to capture stressed and potentially badly-injured wild animals. 

A Koala Hospital (now Koala Conservation Australia) volunteer for many years, Sheila Bailey, had worked on firegrounds before, but her experiences last fire season will always remain with her. ‘The team fans out over a fireground, checking for signs of wildlife. Great to find koalas alive out there, but I knew from experience that their injuries were often extreme and life-threatening. Your heart really goes out to innocent wildlife caught in the horror.’ 

‘Injuries were often extreme and life-threatening’, says volunteer Sheila Bailey. 

The Port Macquarie Koala Hospital collaborates with multiple agencies in order to enter firegrounds safely; these agencies include the National Parks and Wildlife Service, Forestry Corporation of NSW, the NSW Rural Fire Service and local councils. 

Sue Stubbs volunteered her time and energy over many days and speaks about how well the different agencies worked together. ‘Every agency contributed their own area of expertise. It was so important that we listened to each others’ knowledge and experience before agreeing strategies and next steps’. 

Extra support came to our aid too. Peter Berecry is a Port Macquarie arborist who volunteers regularly with us. His elevated working platform was vital on many days and Peter’s training and experience enabled him to rescue koalas stranded high in burnt-out trees. In addition, Ryan Tate and his enthusiastic scat detection dog, Taylor, also helped by identifying active koala areas, and narrowing down where the teams needed to focus their efforts. 

We all hope that such a nightmare fire season will not recur, and in the event of future fires, we hope that as a nation, we are better prepared. We say ‘thank you’ to St George Bank, who donated funds earlier this year, for more personal protective clothing and equipment for the Koala Hospital’s bushfire search and rescue teams. The Port Macquarie Koala Hospital will always work to save injured koalas, but the bottom line is, we just cannot afford to lose them to fire, or indeed any other major threats or dangers.

The truth is that now, more than ever, every koala counts.