As weeks of unprecedented bushfires take its toll on Australia’s volunteer firefighters, those who have sacrificed work and sleep speak out

This article is more than 9 months old

This article is more than 9 months old

This article is more than 9 months old

Dozens of firefighters have responded angrily to Scott Morrison’s comments on the bushfires on Tuesday, saying they are exhausted and hurt, and those giving up their income for weeks at a time needed assistance.

In response to questions from Guardian Australia on Tuesday, Morrison dismissed concerns that the New South Wales Rural Fire Service, the largest volunteer firefighting force in the world, was being stretched beyond endurance by the unprecedented scale of the bushfires.

“[The] fact is these crews, yes, they’re tired, but they also want to be out there defending their communities … And I thank them all for what they’re doing, particularly all those who support them.”

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He said the government was not considering professionalising the service, and he did not address concerns that crews were crowdsourcing donations for food, water and equipment.

Morrison’s words prompted fury among firies and their families who contacted Guardian Australia, many of whom asked to remain anonymous.

Volunteer firefighter Stuart* said: “You’ve got an incurably giving, altruistic group of people donating hard strenuous labor, at high cost to themselves … and we’ve got a PM that’s quite happy to say we’ll work them till they break.

“Whether it’s wanton, wilful or plain stupidity, [it’s a] failure to recognise that things are not what they used to be. It’s not the same game any more, so the same model of fighting … is not going to work.”

Stuart said Morrison’s remark that volunteer efforts were “a big part of how Australia has always dealt with these issues” had also upset a lot of people.

“It shows a massive disconnect with what’s on the ground. Everyone knows something’s changed.”

Meraiah Foley, PhD (@meraiahfoley) Our farm at #Budawang is still burning, being watched and protected by civilians with hoses, bc there aren’t enough trucks or resources on this fire. People in rural communities do not abandon each other, but no one WANTS to be there. The silence from our leaders is deafening. pic.twitter.com/9AH2jSqwOl

Jenna (@jenna_rose21) God this makes me furious. My husband is an RFS volunteer- we have very very few in our area. He’s been doing 18 hour days fighting fires on his days off work, and then going to fight fires the minute he finishes work on work days. He is exhausted but if they don’t fight 1/2

Some firefighters have been working since August as the bushfire crisis devastating NSW has burnt through more than 2.7m hectares from the Queensland border to the south coast, destroyed more than 700 homes, caused unprecedented air quality hazards and taken six lives.

“Clearly the fire seasons are getting longer and more severe and the lack of political acknowledgment of this and the causes is distressing,” said one 71-year-old volunteer.

“This is a good time to talk about what we are experiencing on a daily basis.”

Facebook Twitter Pinterest A firefighter fights a blaze near Braidwood, NSW. Photograph: Mike Bowers/The Guardian

The RFS has more than 70,000 volunteers, stationed at brigades small and large across the state, under the direction of local captains.

April Atteridge, daughter and granddaughter of volunteer firefighters, said they joined “to protect Australian lives”, not because they wanted to be there.

“They want to make sure no one dies, it’s not fun, it’s not a leisure activity – they care more than the one man that is supposed to be looking after us, that’s why they’re out there,” she said.

“They gain nothing from it, if anything they gain mental scars and trauma that affects their sleep 10 years later.”

Facebook Twitter Pinterest The NSW Rural Fire Service is the largest volunteer firefighting force in the world. Photograph: Dean Lewins/EPA

Many others responded to Morrison’s comments on social media.

“Does he honestly think that this is how we want to spend our summer?” wrote Meg McGowan, the wife of a firefighter, in a viral blogpost. “We have no idea how many days or weeks this will last.

The landlord won’t accept thoughts and prayers in his bank account. Stuart

“To say that we are out there because we want to be is insulting and belittling, but unsurprising,” wrote a commenter underneath.

“When I look around me on the fireground I see people just like me, driven by a sense of altruism but hurting emotionally, physically and financially.”

The captain of the Byron Bay RFS, Doug Rowley, said his members had put in 593 man hours over the past 14 days, fighting huge fires at Mount Nardi and Myall Creek.

Sleep deprivation, particulate inhalation and the distress of seeing scores of burned wildlife “day after day after day” was also taking its toll, he said.

“A lot of rural fire brigades are working in the community they live in. So when a house or, heaven forbid, a life is lost, it’s touching those people directly.”

He said the current campaigns were “a whole new dynamic” from the usual callouts lasting just a couple of hours or days.

“People can’t go without income,” said Rowley, who added he found Morrison’s comments inappropriate.

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“If people are renting or paying off the mortgage … to be able to take extended periods of time off has a direct and negative financial impact and people are likely to say next time they can’t do it.”

Some NSW RFS members – such as public servants – receive pay while they volunteer, and those on some welfare payments (but not Jobactive) can be exempted from their mutual obligations for up to 13 weeks. The rest take annual or community leave, are retired, or just don’t do any paid work in that time.

Tony Thefathippy (@TonyThefathippy) We are fortunate that our firies are so good. RFS volunteers are really unpaid professionals, with quality training, expertise, and experience. There needs to be some form of compensation and support so they don't suffer mentally or financially for saving us.

“The laugh we had the other day at the station, was that the landlord won’t accept thoughts and prayers in his bank account,” Stuart said.

Therese Berriman works four days a week and takes leave without pay to fight fires in the Blue Mountains, where she has volunteered for about 12 years.

“I am a qualified crew leader and truck driver, so if I can’t take out a crew and there are no other crew leaders available, five other volunteers can’t attend the fire either,” she explained.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Firefighters from the NSW Rural Fire Service monitor the remnants of the Ruined Castle fire from Echo Point lookout in Katoomba, Blue Mountains. Photograph: Steven Saphore/AAP

A spokesman for the RFS, Inspector Ben Shepherd, said the organisation understood there was a bigger burden on volunteers this year, especially the self-employed members, and that’s why the organisation was thankful “for any time they can give”.

“[By] and large it’s about striking that balance for why they do this, and encouraging people to do this for the right reason,” he said.

Shepherd said most volunteers wouldn’t want to be paid because it would detract from the reasons they do it.

“As a volunteer myself, the reason I did this was because I wanted to help my community, not for any financial gain.”

Volunteers Guardian Australia spoke to agreed they were not in it for the money. But they worried how much longer they could keep going and if conditions would continue like this season in future.

Deputy captain Geoff Goldrick said a flexible system could fund employers to hire replacement casuals during fires, refund daycare and after-school care, provide meal and laundry allowances, or just pay those who couldn’t take annual leave.

“But we need something, and soon. We are proud to be volunteers. We want to remain volunteers. But there are limits. Even ‘heroes’ need a safety net.”

Stuart said it was getting to the point where many volunteers would have to say “I can’t do it any more because it’s costing me too much”.