This message is from: [EMAIL PROTECTED] When we were in Australia last summer, I picked up a brochure put out by the government on how to stay by your house and farm to protect it from a fire. As you might know, fires in Australia are quite prevalent, but I think they are different than ours, in one way because the trees are mostly types of gum trees, which burn very rapidly and easily due to their oils, but they also recover. Big trees can loose their outer bark and you can see in areas where fire went through 2 or 3 years ago, all the big trees are living. As to the brochure, it was full of tips like filling your gutters with water, removing all curtains from windows, always having a clearing around the house. One of the things I noticed in Australia, there are no roofs that are not ceramic or metal. And I also think one of the major differences in the countries, is that there is a lot of bush area in Australia where there will be no help. There is just too much area to cover for the manpower. So you are on your own. It did say to get your family out ahead of time if possible. My Fjords are real glad they live in CT where most natural disasters come in the form of snow! Valerie Columbia, CT
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