“We were trying to contact the local council but we were unable to make any contact. We just heard that there is a fire and we must go.” Through a Gippsland fires Facebook page the group contacted Bairnsdale neighbourhood Centre boss Leanne Jennings who advised where their help was most needed. The neighbourhood centre also assisted with accommodation and extra cooking facilities. One of the hundreds of meals the Sikh volunteers handed out. Credit:Joe Armao The Sikhs based their food service at the relief centre at the Bairnsdale football ground. On the first night they served more than 100 meals and were still feeding people at 1.30 am. "The Red Cross and the Salvation Army were there but there was still a great need,” explains Mr Singh. Undeterred by the smoke and confusion the Sikhs also travelled to other fire-threatened communities including Lakes Entrance. On Thursday they helped feed anxious locals and travellers at Orbost until the town was evacuated. “Everybody had to leave from there,” says Mr Singh.

As expected, a staple served by the group is classic veggie curry. But the group also does pasta (including gluten-free) and sandwiches. “Whatever people like,” says Mr Singh. A second van of helpers joined the group on Friday. They have restocked mainly from local supermarkets but group members have also replenished supplies from Melbourne. Sikh Volunteers Australia was founded by the burgeoning Sikh community in Melbourne’s south east about six years ago. It established a free food service in 2017 and now regularly helps feed homeless people in the municipalities of Casey and Frankston. Early this year it extended its reach to help feed those affected by bushfires at Bunyip near Pakenham. The group’s work is driven by the Sikh belief in people caring for one another says Mr Singh.

Since Monday, and under the watchful eye of head chef Sukhwinder Kaur, the group has prepared and served breakfast, lunch and dinner for many hundreds of residents and tourists. And to date, the locals have not complained about a lack of steak or chops. The fires have not only inspired good deeds for fellow human beings. Victorian veterinary nurses Hana Cherry and Melissa Keslake recently abandoned their day jobs –albeit temporarily – to generate and distribute funds for domestic animals and wildlife left injured and homeless by fires in Victoria and NSW. In November they raised $10,000 online which they used to buy medical and food supplies. Then, in their boss’s Land Cruiser, they headed through drought and fire ravaged NSW in search of animals in trouble. There were plenty.

“We went on this massive journey to tiny forgotten towns where paddocks were full of cows killed and injured by fires. “I’ve never seen drought like it,” says Ms Cherry 33. “I’ve never seen anything like it.” The two nurses worked with local farmers and residents as they travelled, attending animals as varied as cows and koalas. Ms Cherry points out that fires are devastating even for those native animals left behind. Much work for instance is needed to help koalas rehabilitate and adapt to new forest homes; where there is forest left that is. Along the way the two made contact with the Animal Rescue Collective, a group made up of local wildlife rescuers across the country. Now the two nurses are working with the collective in Victoria, collecting cash and other donations to help aid wildlife workers in areas affected by the current fires.

“There’s a whole lot of amazing carers in Gippsland prepared to take in wildlife,” says Ms Cherry. "But we’ve got to wait until it’s safe and we’re allowed to send people in.” Donations to the animal rescue cause can be made here: https://mkc.org.au/donations/koalaisland