Stinken Hot here

[swamp witch]

Wish i could send some heat you way.It's stinken' hot over here.40 degrees Celsius today and it's not full on summer yet.Been preparing the house for fires today.I live in a fire suburb and we're expecting a fire,been 6 years and the bush is dry.Over 20 fires started in the state today and lightning started more tonight.It's gunna be a bad summer.Snow and ice are your killers,we get fire

[bucketobolts]

Think I'll stick with the snow and ice.Lot easier to deal with than fire that comes from the sky at night.

[eightwheeler]

Thats crazy!! stay safe Swamp!!!!!!

[swamp witch]

Hate the thought of your tornadoes.At lest we get a warning.You can smell it{Burnt trees and leaves}If you can't smell it,it's not coming at you.If you see it, start thinkin' quick.Temperatures back down to mid 20's.Jan and Feb are the bad months.3 Ericson Skycranes arrived the other day{god bless you guys for making such a life saving machine}U.S. or Canada,don't know.800 gallons of water in one drop.Kicks the fires butt.Saves peoples lives.There based 7 mile away as well as a fleet of choppers with buckets under them.It's an aerial circus when the fire comes.I'll post some photos if it's this year.My last photos are 2003 and are analog,pre digital and I don't know how to convert.All is well at the moment.

[lewis]

Best of luck on the fires Swamp Witch. I have seen those things on T.V. and they are terrible.

[swamp witch]

A sign I bet you guys don't see

Entering my suburb you will pass one of these signs,like all suburbs with fire risk over here.This was our one this morning.It was +39c at 11pm this morning.Shorts and t-shirt weather and for the ladies,short skirts and skimpy tops[Hmmmmmmm} Gotta be something good about the heat.

[lewis]

What are your winter temps?

[swamp witch]

What are your winter temps?

+2 about the lowest.2 farmers got burnt protecting there farm at Bathurst today and to choppers hit each other fighting the same fire.Pilots couldn't see each other in the smoke.Both landed but 1 isn't flying again.

[Maniac]

Trade some heat for cold

Swamp Witch Still hot Down under? It's -34 c here tonight the high today was -25 c Same for tomorrow. Forecast is 0 c for the weekend. I worked in NSW for several months some years ago. I discovered when its cold you can always put another layer of clothes on. When its hot I could only take so much off before people became offended.

[swamp witch]

You right about the layers of clothes.If it gets to hot I jump in the pool.I measured the pool water and it's +20c.Temperatures been nice lately,about 22-28c.Late December to February is our true summer where it's around 32-40c.Fire season is usually between October to March.I heard today 110 fires burning in the state today.A lot have been burning for over 3 weeks in bush land somewhere not threatening property.Not a problem until the wind picks up then the fires will move the speed of the wind.Very low humidity doesn't help either.The fire in Victoria last March was catching cars as they tried to outrun it.1 survivor said he was doing 80kph on the road and the fire went passed him in the paddock beside the road.174 people died in that fire with some 40 cars burnt out on the exit road from the town.Funny thing is if you can get behind it,your safe,the fire front passes in about 20 minutes.Lot of people investing in bunkers with oxygen tanks inside after that fire.A very good idea I think.That Victorian fire was deadly because that fire started in the high country about 30 kilometers from the towns.It was started first by high winds blowing the power wires till they touched.Video on U-Tube.Those towns were full of rich retirees,you've gotta be rich to buy there,and they waited to see the fire before trying to escape and with that wind you're not getting away and those that stayed burnt in there wooden houses.Didn't stand a chance.Even the knives and forks melted.It was total destruction.That's why we call them fire storms.Last good fire there was 30 years ago.Not many of the residents had seen a fire and were totally unprepared.Me on the other hand have seen 4 fires in the 15 years I've lived in my suburb.When a fire is nearby the fire fighters line my street with tankers and pumpers,3 in front of my house so you feel pretty safe,all good friends after you've fought a couple of fires side by side over the years.We open the house to them,they come in and play pinball and they help themselves to the fridge for drinks.Lest we can do as the are all volunteers and they get burnt before they give up.True heroes for no money.P.S. I hope I didn't bore you all but I think it's a story worth telling.