leelastarsky: (burnt flag 2009)
( Mar. 4th, 2009 11:36 am)
Thankfully the storm wasn't as big or bad as they'd anticipated.  Not here anyway.  Big winds and dust storm (which was very like the precursor for Ash Wednesday in '83) They were still telling folks to leave work early and get out of the city at 5pm last night, and warning folks not to go into town in the evening.  So they really thought it was going to be bad.  Trees falling, roofs off etc.

Here's the contrast photo to the one I took the day before.  You can kind of see how windy it was. 

By dinner time last night, all the topsoil from the farms in western Victoria coated every surface in my house.  O.o  *worries how farmers are going to grow anything*  I spent the evening and this morning dusting.  Anyone who knows me would be aware how unusual that was, but I had to - there was a layer of black grit over everything

As far as trauma goes, we got off so easy!  Nevertheless, some folks are whining, saying the text message warning we got was over the top and unnecessarily alarmed people.  But I think it was brilliant and am tremendously grateful for it!


leelastarsky: (Beaker)
( Mar. 2nd, 2009 02:57 pm)
I just got a text from the Vic Police! 

02/03/2009 14:18
Msg from Vic Police:Extreme weather in Vic expected Mon night & Tues. High wind & fire risk.Listen to local ABC Radio for emergency updates.

I have never had one of those before.  Ever.  

Checked with Mum, and she got one on her mobile too! 

I guess this must be a new service?  They're doing a blanket send to all mobile phones?  One way of getting the word out I suppose...

Just checked with the Lord of the Vegemite, and he didn't get one on his mobile... praps cos he's not the account holder?

Now I'm worried.

It's an absolutely beautiful day here at the moment, although it is a Total Fire Ban. 

*wonders wtf is coming*    O.o

ETA: kids all got it on their phones too, including the Lord of the Vegemite.

ETA 2: apparently this is part of the new emergency warning system the States all agreed to implement 18 mths ago, then couldn’t get their act together.  They thought it would be a breach of privacy to send unsolicited texts to mobiles.

This is excellent.  Definitely spam I'm more than happy to get! 

ETA 3:  Calm before the Storm?
Just so you can see how nice it seems today. 



The cool change came through, and the temperature dropped YAY!the cut I always forget. )

ETA:

14 dead in Victoria bushfires

I'm really concerned about friends in Kinglake and the Bendigo area. 

That's over 116* F!

This is INSANE.  I have never felt that sort of heat in my life!  (Yes, I know that's the sort of temp - and hotter - that they get in Central Australia and the Middle East, but this is MELBOURNE!)

Girlfriend, Carmel called in for a visit (we ate our Optifast bars together ;~P) and we noticed the bushfire brown sky just before she left.  Then we stepped outside and saw THIS -



That's not a cloud behind that blanket of brown, it's smoke.  Rolling and roiling as we watched, looking frighteningly like a bloody nuke! From a bushfire maybe 20km away.  *flails*  The wind is HORRIBLE.  :~C  The heat is unbelievable...

Carmel has had to take a different (and longer) route home because of the fire danger between her house and ours.  *flails*

It's 41*C outside my house, and still rising.  With horrible, scary North winds.  Stuff of bushfires.  :~(

*clings to aircon*

urrr....washing machine just finished... Will have to brave the heat to hang out clothes.... 

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