Operation VIC FIRE ASSIST
20 February 2009
ADF support to bushfire relief in Whittlesea and Flowerdale
Defence personnel deployed on the Joint Task Force (JTF662) assisting the Victorian Government on Operation VIC FIRE ASSIST are being consolidated as government agencies and fire-affected communities take over the task of their own recovery.
JTF662 will continue to provide Australian Defence Force capabilities until the need for its specialist services are taken over by other government agencies and commercial entities.
Military engineers have completed their last major tasks and are preparing for relocation to home units, as government organisations and private contractors start to rebuild the areas devastated in the Black Saturday fires.
Meanwhile, the Search Task Group soldiers have been allocated to the role of community engagement in consultation with government agencies.
Community meetings and consultations within communities are becoming increasingly coordinated and cohesive and are enabling the communities to make their own decisions about their future.
Soldiers assisted a Flowerdale community decision to shift food and equipment from the local hotel to the Flowerdale Recreation Reserve where the community’s re-growth will commence.
| 20090219adf8114832_017 Australian Defence Force and emergency services personnel lend a hand in relocating donated stores to the new distribution point in Flowerdale, Victoria. (Date taken: 19 February 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090219adf8114832_083 Lieutenant Colonel Chris Connelly speaks to key personnel from the Community Service Hub Flowerdale after the local community meeting at Flowerdale Hotel. (Date taken: 19 February 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090219adf8114832_106 Lieutenant Colonel Chris Connelly briefs Flowerdale locals on the Australian Defence Force drawdown during a community meeting at the Flowerdale Hotel. (Date taken: 19 February 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090219adf8114832_151 Corporal Chris Tzanabetis, 4th Combat Engineering Regiment, and Lance Corporal Jay Marriot, 4th Brigade, drive to Whittlesea Staging Area after completing their task of tree removal in the fire effected areas. (Date taken: 19 February 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090219adf8114832_183 Military vehicles in support of the Joint Task Force Engineer Task Group relocate to Whittlesea Staging Area prior to going home. (Date taken: 19 February 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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| 20090219adf8114832_185 Military vehicles in support of the Joint Task Force Engineer Task Group relocate to Whittlesea Staging Area prior to going home. (Date taken: 19 February 2009) Low-Res | Hi-Res |
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