The extent of the bushfires this year is unprecedented. Record breaking high temperatures along with a long standing drought has resulted in a perfect storm of tinder dry land and enough heat to fuel fires that have burnt out of control for months. And the end is, sadly, not in sight.
The intensity of the fires shows no signs of abating. An estimated 6.3 million hectares of land have gone up in flames, predominantly in New South Wales and other areas of south-east Australia. To put that in perspective, 900,000 hectares burned in the 2019 Amazon fires and 800,000 hectares in the California wildfires of 2018. The scale of these bushfires has simply never been seen before, they are utterly devastating land, wildlife, communities and businesses.
Bushfires are a normal part of life in Australia. They happen every year, but we’ve never seen anything like this.
25 people have lost their lives so far and more than 1,300 homes are estimated to have been lost. And the toll the fires have already taken on our beloved wildlife is staggering. Close to half a billion animals have been killed or impacted, and this number is only expected to rise. Local wildlife rescue centres are doing their best to rescue koalas and kangaroos and any other animals they can get to.
Volunteer firefighters have proven to be truly heroic, fighting fires day in day out for months. Showing up where no-one else will and demonstrating incredible bravery.
In short, we are just devastated by what is happening here. It is simply heartbreaking.
We feel a strong responsibility to help everyone involved in fighting these fires. That’s why Drop Bear Adventures is pledging $2 of every ticket we sell to the Red Cross Australia. Plus we are giving all our valued customers the opportunity to make their own donations to the Red Cross. We also have a donation tin in our office for further donations which will be given to a local wildlife charity, which is yet to be decided. It may not seem like much but every little helps when you’ve lost everything.
The volunteers at the Red Cross Australia are some of the most kind and genuine people, and we are proud to support them in their hard work and dedication to protecting our home.
Our responsibility towards the health of our planet has never been greater. The link between the severity of the bushfires and climate change is obvious. Our commitment as a small business towards achieving carbon neutrality has always been one of our top priorities, and even more so now.
Look out for further updates on our blog on how we are doing our bit to fight climate change, and how you can help.
Written by Kate Moxhay at katemoxhay.com