The use of fire shelters or bunkers is certainly not a new idea. As our country was developed, forestry was a major industry which employed many people who lived with their families scattered through out the forests. Fire shelters comprised a major component of their fire safety plans. These shelters were located near townships or timber mills and their location was known to all the people of the district. Over time these shelters fell into disrepair or were removed by government as the focus of bush fire survival centered on preparing individual properties to cope with fire attack.

There are many types of fire shelters nowadays. These shelters vary widely in both price and sophistication, ranging from a hole in the ground lined withtimber or sandbags, converted shipping containers to purpose built shelters constructed from reinforced concrete and fire rated steel. In the past it was commonly held that a shelter was only required during the initial passing of the fire front, a period of about fifteen minutes during which the radiant heat reached it’s peak.

Experts studying the effects of Black Saturday however estimate that in some areas this radiant heat effect would have remained fatal for up to two hours. Bearing this in mind anyone considering purchasing a shelter should be certain that their shelter can withstand prolonged exposure to intense heat and also provide an adequate supply of clean air. Some shelters come with air tanks while others use an air filtering system but any using oxygen tanks should probably be avoided as oxygen is highly explosive when exposed to flame.

For many people the choice of shelter will depend on a number of factors, these being cost, level of threat and the number of peoplewho might use it. The cost of the shelter might be defrayed amongst a number of neighbors which would allow for a more sophisticated unit.

Like this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed and get loads more!