collection lost in Grampian fire

[Euan McDonald]

On Friday morning the Grampian fire past through our family farm at the base of the Grampians. Fortunately the houses and museum on the farm were saved but the collection of Blitzes were lost. The heat was that intense the alloy tray on a Holmes wrecker melted into a pool.
This is the second collection I have lost as I lost a couple in the Glenburn fire on Black Saturday.
The upside is the three Bren gun carriers are ok with only one road wheel burning.

[Dave Mills]

Graphics scenes Euan. Was thinking about your family and the fires as they ripped through the Grampians last week. Material objects can be replaced or renewed most of the time. Life is what is important, and am glad to hear that the family are OK.

Best of wishes and hope all goes well in the future.

Dave.

[Private_collector]

Oh Euan, thats terrible news.

It must be heart wrenching to lose all those vehicles.

Glad not all was lost, ......including your lives.

[Keith Webb]

We live in a country that can deal a pretty harsh hand at times.

Very glad your folks are OK and managed to save the home and other buildings.

Hate to think how many CMPs have been lost in bush fires over the years.

The old tyres burn with a fierce heat which is one of the reasons my cab 12 (cab only) pictured above has not been completely burnt as it was just sitting on a bare chassis.

[hrpearce]

Sorry to hear that news Euan.

[Robin Craig]

So very sorry to see your loss.

Robin

[motto]

I sympathise with your loss Euan. You bring them home to preserve them and it's a blow when they are destroyed whilst in your care.
Unfortunately, Nature is relentless and it's only a matter of time before rain contributes to the process of returning everything to the soil from whence it came.

Dorothea Mackellar got it right, this land has always been a challenge.

I love a sunburnt country,
A land of sweeping plains,
Of ragged mountain ranges,
Of drought and flooding rains.

David

[jack neville]

Sorry to hear it Euan. I was watching those fires as Amphitheatre is not that far from you. And the beer that was in those barrels? Gone too? No wonder you look so sad. Seriously though as Keith suggested. Every bushfire in Australia probably claims another relic here and there. Hope you can salvage a lot of bits.

[Tony Wheeler]

Very sorry to see these scenes Euan, I was nervous all week about your Grampians collection but I figured the last thing you needed in the middle of a bushfire was pesky phone calls from me. Uppermost in my mind were the carriers so I'm relieved to hear they escaped serious damage, and of course it's great news that the museum was saved along with the houses. I imagine it was a huge effort by all concerned and a horribly tense time for your folks, I know what it feels like to wait for days and days while a raging bushfire approaches, wondering if it will or won't hit you, and praying for a favourable break in the weather to avert disaster and possible death. This was a highly unpredictable fire by all reports, with a 12 km high column spotting miles away and generating its own local wind conditions, all of which no doubt added to their anxiety. Friday morning arrival suggests to me the southwesterly change may have come just a few hours too late to spare the property...? Had your folks evacuated by then or did they stay until the bitter end? Either way it takes a huge toll so I hope they're OK, and whatever damage the farm sustained can be recovered from soon.

As for the blitz collection - very sad to see but at least no restored vehicles were lost I guess. Also extremely bad luck you've been hit by two different fires 300 km apart - remind me not to store my vehicles anywhere near yours! Seriously though you have my sympathy, I know it's a blow to lose stuff in bushfires. Of course I did offer to store the Holmes wrecker but I promise never to mention that again! I will mention your nice 16 inch chevrons though, which are safe and sound on the C15A chassis you dropped off here. Hopefully this pic will cheer you up a little after what you've been looking at up there.

Anyway thanks for the report Euan, I've been waiting with fingers crossed and fearing the worst. Best of luck to you and your family in the aftermath and recovery period, and also in future bushfire seasons for that matter.

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Terrible news Euan! Sorry to hear your collection - and Keith's Cab 12 - succumbed to the fires.

Very glad to hear you and your family were not hurt, though!

Hanno

[lynx42]

Euan, Stuart and families, we are glad that everyone is OK and it is just items that have been burnt or destroyed. It is sad to see a collection go up in smoke but they are just inanimate objects not like people.

Hopefully something can be saved from the wreckage. The Holmes does not look too bad.

Once again, we are glad that no-one was hurt, the homestead survived and the restored vehicles were safe.

We have been lucky down here so far. It is Australia and the threat is always there.

Regards Rick and Jill.

[lynx42]

The fires have been close in Gippsland too.

This is the result in a local shed. Not military vehicles but 3 restored Rileys and a Vauxhall and of course all of his garage gear. It was so hot that window glass melted and ran down the doors. The alloy engine parts melted leaving the steel bits exposed.



Heart breaking for that family too. Fortunately no one was hurt.

Regards Rick

[Lynn Eades]

Euan, I am sorry to hear your news. I wish you a better run in the future.

[jack neville]

Ironic scenes in those last photos that us Aussies are used to I suppose. Looking at all the burnt out wreckage in the foreground and you are left wondering why there are nice leafy green gum trees in the background.

Every single summer. Every single year, has its own tragic stories. And will next year and every year after.

Gotta love this country! And sometimes you wonder why!

[sth65pac]

Sad to hear and see Euan,

In 2003 many trucks were burned in the fires around us in the shoalhaven, many blitz' around Tomerong and to the west of me. Sad because many were restorable but burned with a lot of houses and sheds.

I have partially recovered some burned vehicles' parts. Though the loss of rubber and alloy is still there. If you can stop the oxygen getting to the metal you may still save the steel panels.

I don't know your situation, but what I have done in the past is sandblast the items ASAP and then paint them in oil based enamel paint. The problem with steel and fire is it oxidizes the steel real fast. Any rain afterwards is 10times as bad.

Saved a bit of stuff that way. Oh and my current internet provider lets me get back on MLU!

Cheers,

Ian

[Tony Wheeler]

Originally Posted by lynx42

The Holmes does not look too bad.

Yes it's only the crappy aluminium tray that's damaged so it's now even more suited for CMP conversion. I reckon it would make a good project for my F60S so if you're having a fire sale Euan let me know!

[Dianaa]

Originally Posted by Tony Wheeler

Yes it's only the crappy aluminium tray that's damaged so it's now even more suited for CMP conversion. I reckon it would make a good project for my F60S so if you're having a fire sale Euan let me know!

That's the Holmes gear off an Inter F5 isn't it? I thought there was a lot of differences between that and the gear used on the CMP and Studebakers.

[Tony Wheeler]

Originally Posted by lynx42

This is the result in a local shed. Not military vehicles but 3 restored Rileys and a Vauxhall and of course all of his garage gear.

This is the worst possible nightmare for any collector - a shed full of restored vehicles ablaze. I've often wondered if a sprinkler system would do any good. Inside the shed it might help reduce ignition by wetting everything down, but once the shed itself collapsed the plumbing would rupture and the spray would stop, after which the radiant heat would quickly dry everything out again and it would soon ignite. However if you put the spray system outside to protect the shed itself there may be a chance to save the whole thing. I know it's been done with houses, I remember reading about a woman in Marysville who installed an elaborate spray system under the eaves, which formed a water curtain around the whole house. Apparently she was ridiculed by some in the town but when Black Saturday came she used it and her house was completely undamaged while the rest of the town was all but wiped off the map. I'll see if I dig up the story. There are probably experts in this field so it may be worth some research.

[Mike Kelly]

Originally Posted by Tony Wheeler

This is the worst possible nightmare for any collector - a shed full of restored vehicles ablaze. I've often wondered if a sprinkler system would do any good. Inside the shed it might help reduce ignition by wetting everything down, but once the shed itself collapsed the plumbing would rupture and the spray would stop, after which the radiant heat would quickly dry everything out again and it would soon ignite. However if you put the spray system outside to protect the shed itself there may be a chance to save the whole thing. I know it's been done with houses, I remember reading about a woman in Marysville who installed an elaborate spray system under the eaves, which formed a water curtain around the whole house. Apparently she was ridiculed by some in the town but when Black Saturday came she used it and her house was completely undamaged while the rest of the town was all but wiped off the map. I'll see if I dig up the story. There are probably experts in this field so it may be worth some research.

Any sprinkler system is better than not having one at all.

Ideally you want a petrol or diesel powered fire pump in a safe location ( don't rely on mains electricity ) and buried poly pipes buried underground feeding off the pump , dig the the poly pipes in about 2 ft deep , around the perimeter of your house/sheds . You then install metal galv. pipe risers from the poly pipe and have metal sprinkler heads on top of the risers ( plastic is useless in fire situations ) . The idea of the spray is to keep the radiant heat off the buildings and also put out embers . Some people even have a remote starting system rigged up to their mobile phone so the pump comes on after it is told to .

Another good idea is to buy some insulation bats and stuff pieces of these into any crevases or openings in your shed/house roof capping and flashing - block up any holes with that stuff

[motto]

If Euen is prepared to sell the Holmes then go for it Tony. The sooner it's under cover or under restoration the better. Time is of the essence now in salvaging as much as possible and disposal to interested parties would have to be a practical solution.
Maybe a fire sale would ease a heavy burden and vastly speed up the recovery process?

David

[Dianaa]

I know Euan is still hoping to use the Holmes gear and Tony also has his hand up, but if it does become available and Tony passes, I be interested in fitting it back on an Inter. The F5 Wreckers were all built as F2 tipper chassis and I have access to one for a restoration.

BTW.Looking at the images, it seems that the plastic pallets were the fuel the fires were able to use doing most of the damage.

[Tony Wheeler]

Originally Posted by Dianaa

The F5 Wreckers were all built as F2 tipper chassis and I have access to one for a restoration.

BTW.Looking at the images, it seems that the plastic pallets were the fuel the fires were able to use doing most of the damage.

I think it should definitely go back on an Inter if one is available, it's just that I had thought this extremely unlikely. Even if I stuck it on a blitz I would leave it unmolested in case it was wanted for an Inter one day. When it comes to restorations I'm a great believer in things going back in their correct places!

Dianaa the photo of the Holmes intact was taken at its previous location from where Euan recovered it. Looks to me like his own storage area was thoroughly cleared of ground fuel, some it piled up against a tree in the background, and fire damage was due exclusively to radiant heat from treetop foliage. I'd say it probably raced through in a couple of minutes, only long enough to partially melt the thin aluminium tray and soften the aluminium frame, allowing the steel structure to collapse on it and cause bending. Even so it's probably still salvageable with a bit of straightening. Of course if the whole thing were steel it would have escaped with no more than scorched paint, and there's even very little of that to be seen on the Holmes, it's mostly just black soot. It's a good lesson in fire preparation for outside storage, there's even a pneumatic tyre here which has failed to ignite. I think it's a topic we should explore in this forum, I'd like to think we're not entirely at the mercy of the bushfire gods!

[David Dunlop]

I recall a chap in the USA a number of years back suggesting that sprinkler systems be used fighting forest fires, not so much to put them out but basically control where and what they burned. I think they showed it being tried around a small group of cottages and it worked quite well.

I think the idea has also been tried somewhere to control the rate and direction of flow with lava. Iceland maybe.


David

[Tony Wheeler]

Well, I dug up the story about the woman in Marysville, as told by the woman herself to the Royal Commission into Black Saturday. I think you'll agree it's a helluva story, quite apart from the water curtain.

By way of background, Marysville was a picturesque historic town near Melbourne with a population of around 500, which was virtually wiped off the map on Saturday 7th Feb 2009 when bushfire destroyed 90% of buildings and killed 45 people, representing one quarter of the death toll of 173 in what was "the largest, deadliest, and most intense firestorm ever experienced in Australia's post-European history." Marysville is gradually rebuilding but of course little remains of the Marysville which existed before Black Saturday.

http://vol4.royalcommission.vic.gov....ex.php?pid=100

[Dianaa]

Originally Posted by Tony Wheeler

I think it should definitely go back on an Inter if one is available, it's just that I had thought this extremely unlikely. ...
... Even so it's probably still salvageable with a bit of straightening. Of course if the whole thing were steel it would have escaped with no more than scorched paint, and there's even very little of that to be seen on the Holmes, it's mostly just black soot. It's a good lesson in fire preparation for outside storage, there's even a pneumatic tyre here which has failed to ignite. I think it's a topic we should explore in this forum, I'd like to think we're not entirely at the mercy of the bushfire gods!

However, one would always wonder if the heat would have taken tensile strength out to the metals.

I don't know if it would be a good idea to load up the gear the way the enthusiast in the pic earlier uses his for moving stuff around.

[motto]

Thanks for the link to Judith's submission Tony. It makes for an interesting 'After battle report'. I hope never to experience anything like what she went through.

David