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| Down Under |
| Wild Winds Lash Sydney |
| 2003-08-24 |
| Gale-force winds have caused havoc in Sydney, downing powerlines and trees, blowing rooves off houses etc. In Sydney: one man died when a tree fell on his car, search has been called off due to bad weather for two missing swimmers off the northern beaches. The Gale has caused damage all down the south-east coast of Australia. NSW State Emergency Services (SES) spokesman Peter O’Neill said the strong gale force winds which began this morning were expected to continue until at least tonight, then become moderate overnight. SES is our volunteer organisation. They don’t get paid but they have a lot of fun. They were busy tonight, backlogged with hundreds of calls. "A lot of trees have come down, also branches have come down ... into yards, across roads, onto cars, (the winds have) brought down power lines, and we’ve also had a lot of house damage," he said. "We’ve had over 500 SES volunteers out, and they’ve been supported by the NSW Fire Brigade’s firefighters. SES is brilliant, I can’t recommend enough to the Brits and Merkins how good it is to have a State-wide co-ordinated team of volunteers supporting the Fireys/police. It helps to clear problems up in double quick time. You could all start up your own volunteer emergency services! You get first-aid training, general rescue and communications training, protective clothing etc. All very useful things to have citizens trained in . |
| Posted by:Anon1 |
| #4 Hang on..."rooves" is the plural of roof ??!! Is that proper Aussie ? |
| Posted by: Carl in NH 2003-8-24 10:17:49 PM |
| #3 Volunteer groups across the US already corridinate with Goverment services on a regular basis during crisis. Except in NYC, where there's probably a tax for saving someones life. |
| Posted by: Charles 2003-8-24 5:18:22 PM |
| #2 Stay safe, Anon1! |
| Posted by: Bulldog 2003-8-24 3:45:39 PM |
| #1 You should email this story link and a strong hint or two to NYC Mayor Blumenthal's office - someone there will "get it" and might even do something that gets the ball rolling elsewhere. Never know. And sending him an email won't excite those Secret Service guys. |
| Posted by: .com 2003-8-24 12:08:37 PM |