The 1943–44 Victorian bushfire season was marked by a series of major
bushfires
A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identif ...
following severe drought conditions in the state of
Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
in Australia. The summer of 1943–44 was the driest summer ever recorded in
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
with just 46 mm falling, a third of the average for the period.
Between 22 December and 15 February 51 people were killed, 700 injured, and 650 buildings were destroyed across the state.
Many personnel who would have been normally available for fire fighting duties had been posted overseas and to remote areas of Australia during World War II.
[
]![1943 - 44 Victorian bushfire season map](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d7/1943_-_44_Victorian_bushfire_season_map.jpg)
22 December 1943
The first major fire was a grassfire at Wangaratta
Wangaratta ( ) is a city in the northeast of Victoria, Australia, from Melbourne along the Hume Highway. The city had an estimated urban population of 19,318 at June 2018. Wangaratta has recorded a population growth rate of almost 1% annually ...
on 22 December which burnt hundreds of hectares and resulted in the deaths of 10 volunteer firefighters near Tarrawingee.
The fire started a short distance away from the Bowser railway yard. It is unclear how it started but the fire spread quickly and headed in a south easterly direction towards Tarrawingee.
The fire swept through Londrigan and East Wangaratta, where several houses were damaged. The fire then crossed the Tarrawingee road and a change of wind drove the flames back upon a large party of fire-fighters who were attempting to create fire breaks. Most of the firefighters escaped in motor-cars and on bicycles, but five men were burnt to death. Five men later died in hospital.
Up to 1000 volunteers, including defence force personnel, help fight the flames during the night. In the morning the winds picked up again split the fire into two. The fires near Oxley Flat were first to be brought under control and the Ovens Valley
The Ovens River, a perennial river of the north-east Murray catchment, part of the Murray-Darling basin, is located in the alpine and Hume regions of the Australian state of Victoria.
Location and features
Formed by the confluence of the East ...
section was stopped by the end of the second day.
14 January 1944
On 14 January and the following day, fires broke out across the state.[ To the west of Melbourne, a series of bushfires broke out between South Australian border and the outskirts of ]Geelong
Geelong ( ) (Wathawurrung: ''Djilang''/''Djalang'') is a port city in the southeastern Australian state of Victoria, located at the eastern end of Corio Bay (the smaller western portion of Port Phillip Bay) and the left bank of Barwon River, ...
. including areas near the towns of Skipton
Skipton (also known as Skipton-in-Craven) is a market town and civil parish in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England. Historically in the East Division of Staincliffe Wapentake in the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is on the River Air ...
, Birregurra
Birregurra is a town on Gulidjan Country in Victoria, Australia approximately south-west of Melbourne. The town is located within the Colac Otway Shire. At the 2016 census, Birregurra had a population of 828.
Birregurra is an Aboriginal word t ...
and Goroke
A croquette is a deep-fried roll consisting of a thick binder combined with a filling, which is breaded and deep-fried; it is served as a side dish, a snack, or fast food worldwide.
The binder is typically a thick béchamel or brown sauce, ...
.[ Many smaller towns were substantially damaged. In central Victoria, fires occurred near Daylesford, Woodend, Gisborne and ]Bendigo
Bendigo ( ) is a city in Victoria, Australia, located in the Bendigo Valley near the geographical centre of the state and approximately north-west of Melbourne, the state capital.
As of 2019, Bendigo had an urban population of 100,991, makin ...
.[
A fire that was started by sparking power lines threatened ]Hamilton Hamilton may refer to:
People
* Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname
** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland
** Lord Hamilt ...
; the fire that started to the west of town was fanned by strong blustering winds, and at one stage had three quarters of the town encircled. 40 houses were lost as well as the railway yards and buildings. The fire was contained eventually near Tarrington
Tarrington is a small village in Herefordshire, England located halfway between Ledbury and Hereford on the A438 road.
The village
The village has approximately 225 residences and a population, according to the 2001 census, of 506. The village ...
.
A fire that started on Mt Sturgeon in the Southern Grampians flared up and raced down the slopes, burnt out Dunkeld
Dunkeld (, sco, Dunkell, from gd, Dùn Chailleann, "fort of the Caledonians") is a town in Perth and Kinross, Scotland. The location of a historic cathedral, it lies on the north bank of the River Tay, opposite Birnam. Dunkeld lies close to t ...
and kept going, then razed the towns of Dundonnell
Dundonnell (Gaelic: Achadh Dà Dhòmhnaill) is a village in Ross and Cromarty, Scotland, on the south side of Little Loch Broom and at the foot of An Teallach, right at the north of the area commonly known as the " Great Wilderness". It is situat ...
, Darlington
Darlington is a market town in the Borough of Darlington, County Durham, England. The River Skerne flows through the town; it is a tributary of the River Tees. The Tees itself flows south of the town.
In the 19th century, Darlington underwen ...
, and Derrinallum
Derrinallum is a town in Victoria, Australia, located on the Hamilton Highway, in the Corangamite Shire. The town is the centre for the surrounding farming community and lies at the foot of Mount Elephant. Mount Elephant is a 380 m-high conical b ...
; the only Derrinallum buildings left standing were the Mechanics' Institute, two churches and several business premises.
A fire negligently left burning just north of Skipton
Skipton (also known as Skipton-in-Craven) is a market town and civil parish in the Craven district of North Yorkshire, England. Historically in the East Division of Staincliffe Wapentake in the West Riding of Yorkshire, it is on the River Air ...
aided by strong northerly winds left a trail of destruction that continued all the way South to Colac a distance of almost 100 kilometres. Eleven people were killed and two youths were convicted. The youths were droving sheep, lit a fire to boil a billy, but failed to extinguish the fire properly. When they had droved their flock about half a mile they saw the fire had started up again and spread quickly amid the grass. From that spot the fire swept along in high dry grass to the west of Skipton. Fanning out and gaining a much broader front the fire continued on and swept Bradvale, Mt Bute, Berrybank, Werneth, on to Cressy, where the fire split and went round the town on either side. The fire passed east of Lismore, but did not enter that town.
Another fire that started on the Warrorie Estate near Irrawarra destroyed 20 houses and burnt out Warncourt and threatened the township of Birregurra
Birregurra is a town on Gulidjan Country in Victoria, Australia approximately south-west of Melbourne. The town is located within the Colac Otway Shire. At the 2016 census, Birregurra had a population of 828.
Birregurra is an Aboriginal word t ...
from three sides. Five houses were burnt in town. A wind change re-directed the fire to open country in the North East. The fire was brought under control near Mt. Gellibrand.
In the Melbourne area, 63 homes were destroyed in the tea tree lined streets of Sandringham Sandringham can refer to:
Places
* Sandringham, New South Wales, Australia
* Sandringham, Queensland, Australia
* Sandringham, Victoria, Australia
**Sandringham railway line
**Sandringham railway station
**Electoral district of Sandringham
* Sand ...
, Beaumaris
Beaumaris ( ; cy, Biwmares ) is a town and community on the Isle of Anglesey in Wales, of which it is the former county town of Anglesey. It is located at the eastern entrance to the Menai Strait, the tidal waterway separating Anglesey from ...
, and Black Rock. Another fire in the northern suburbs of Melbourne burnt down 5 houses in the Glenroy – Pascoe Vale
Pascoe Vale is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, north of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Merri-bek local government area. Pascoe Vale recorded a population of 18,171 at the 2021 census.
History
Pa ...
area.
14 February 1944
On 14 February a fire broke out near Hearnes Oak and quickly took hold and destroyed 16 houses and the post office before moving on to Morwell
Morwell is a town in the Latrobe Valley area of Gippsland, in South-Eastern Victoria, Australia approximately 152 km (94 mi) east of Melbourne.
Morwell has a population of 14,389 people at the .
It is both the seat of local governme ...
where it burnt down 40 houses and 3 people were killed. The fire also destroyed 40 houses and caused 3 deaths in the Traralgon
Traralgon ( ) is a town located in the east of the Latrobe Valley in the Gippsland region of Victoria, Australia and the most populous city of the City of Latrobe. The urban population of Traralgon at the was 26,907. It is the largest and fastes ...
area.[
A wildfire took hold and burnt acreage from Frankston to Hastings. Townships of Langwarrin, Pearcedale and Baxter were damaged as the fire when through. 300 volunteers fought the blaze on a 12 mile front. In the evening light rain assisted firefighters get the blaze under control.
Houses were also reported lost in Leongatha, Wonthaggi, Warragul and Koondrook.
A Royal Commission was held into the ]Yallourn
Yallourn, Victoria was a company town in Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia built between the 1920s and 1950s to house employees of the State Electricity Commission of Victoria, who operated the nearby Yallourn Power Station, Victoria, Yal ...
fires in 1944.
A Royal Commission into the Yallourn fires was held by Judge Leonard Edward Bishop Stretton and a major outcome following the fires was the establishment of the Country Fire Authority
The Country Fire Authority (CFA) is a volunteer fire service responsible for fire suppression, rescues, and response to other accidents and hazards across most of the state Victoria, Australia. CFA comprises over 1,200 brigades organised in 21 ...
in 1945 to co-ordinate rural fire brigades.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Victorian bushfire season
1943
Events
Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix.
January
* January 1 – WWII: The Soviet Union announces that 22 German divisions have been encircled at Stalingrad, with 175,000 killed and 137,650 captured.
* January 4 – ...
Victorian Bushfire Season, 1943–44
Victorian Bushfire Season, 1943–44
1940s wildfires
1940s in Victoria (Australia)