Loggers claim vital role in fire

By Melissa Meehan
AS STORIES of heroism and hardship during the aftermath of the Black Saturday fires continue to filter through, it seems one group has been forgotten.
Logging contractor Malcolm Warnock played an important role during the fires to protect towns from the blaze by creating fire breaks and helping with fire suppression.
Mr Warnock worked in the Marysville and Blue Range areas during the fires and also made his logging equipment available to the firefighting efforts.
Along with three staff members, he worked almost 24 hours a day, each day for two weeks during the fires.
“We rotated between 12-hour shifts, so the machines were working around the clock,” he said.
“The DSE was worried about us doing too much; otherwise we’d be out there longer.
“Its part of our contract – that we help out with fire fighting when we are required.
“I live in Yarra Glen and I have staff that live in Alexandra so it was important that we could help out.”
He said the hardest part of working in the Blue Range and Marysville was worrying about what was happening in Yarra Glen.
“Yarra Glen was under threat and we didn’t know what was happening,” he said.
“Its part of the job I guess, it’s not the first time we have helped out with firefighting efforts.”
Mr Warnock and four staff members spent a month helping with fire suppression before they went back to work.
“We had to get back to salvaging the burnt-out coupes,” he said. “After we were done there we went up to Toolangi, but we moved out of there a couple of weeks ago back to fire salvage coupes.”
Mr Warnock and his staff were the frontline when it came to fire suppression.
“We work in forest conditions every day, we are able to control the equipment in difficult terrain,” he said.
“Most of the dozers and excavators used were operated by contractors who work in the bush everyday.”
He said salvaging the wood was an important part of the clean up.
“To keep the catchments and forests sustainable we need to harvest as many dead trees as possible, which is then calculated as part of the sustainable yield,” he said.
“But we are never going to harvest anywhere near the amount of timber that was lost.”
Executive officer for the Victorian Forest Harvest and Cartage Council, Scott Gentle, said the logging contractors did an exceptional job helping with firefighting efforts.
“What they can do in a couple of hours takes other less experienced operators days,” Mr Gentle said.
“They helped out clearing roads and creating fire breaks and in some cases hitting the fire head on.”
He said they did what had to be done.
“While many contractors and their workers held fears for friends and family they continued to stay on the front line,” he said.
“It’s easy to put negative labels on people working in the bush. Whether you agree with timber harvesting or don’t, the fact is that forest contractors provide a valuable service in times of fire and do their utmost to protect forests and communities no matter what people in those communities may think of them.”