Ex-county woman fighting Oz fires

Anthony and Dawn Whittall, volunteer Australian firefighters, originally from Telford, at an awards dinner

A former Shropshire woman has told of the devastation she has faced as a volunteer Australian firefighter battling the deadly wildfires.

Dawn Whittall, formerly of Wellington and Sutton Hill, Telford, has been fighting the infernos which have swept through southern Australia, along with her firefighter husband, Anthony.

The couple had trained as volunteer firefighters and are among crews working around the clock.

In an emotional e-mail to her family in Telford, Mrs Whittall, who emigrated with her mother in the 1980s, revealed the trauma they had faced, including the bodies of people who had tried in vain to escape the fires in their cars.

Their son, Alistair, a trainee firefighter, has so far been kept away from the grim scenes, despite desperately wanting to help.

Their daughter Bec, helped clear the family home of any items they wanted to keep in case the fire spread.

The teenagers are staying with friends, as their parents work around the clock, meeting only at fire scenes.

Derek White, Mrs Whittall's uncle, from Sutton Hill, Telford, said the family "were all concerned" until they received the good news they were safe in an e-mail.

In the e-mail, Mrs Whittall, a lecturer, described the scenes they had battled in Kinglake – one of the worst places hit.

"We were some of the first crews to get to these fires and I cannot underestimate the stress of the day," she said.

"We had been hearing mayday calls on the fire channels for trapped firefighters.

"It was a fire of such ferocity that really nothing could stop its advance, she said.

"Anthony and his crew were sent in a strike team as it was happening and mine was sent to relieve overnight and the next day.

"So we met up on the fire ground between shifts.

"I was very happy to see him."

The mother-of-two said it was "overwhelming" and fought to hold back her tears as she battled the fires.

Unable to relive the horror, she said: "We can do the job, but not talk about it yet.

"It was carnage, dead animals, piles of burnt-out cars where people had tried to escape in a panic, and no houses left anywhere.

"The roads were closed off and trees and power lines across the road.

"Anthony and his crew had to literally cut their way to Kinglake to assist with rescues and search for injured or deceased."

She said she discovered three bodies in a house, but that was just three of the rising death toll and at day break they saw "only carnage".

"We had to deal with people asking where their families were, kids who had lost their parents and husbands separated from wives," she said.

"Many people were walking around shell-shocked with nothing but a blanket, shorts and bare feet."

She said they had held prayers and thought themselves lucky that the inferno did not reach their area.

By Kirsty Smallman