Back from the Brissie storm

It was amazing to see the destruction the storm had caused. Looking at hills full of trees you could see the path it had taken as some had lost their leaves and branches, whilst others remained untouched. It was the same with houses, this one with a tarpaulin on the roof covering the damage, the house next door with no damage at all.

The work was physically demanding (mainly coping with the heat and humidity!), the hours were long and I loved it and would volunteer to go to the next emergency in a second. It's a sad fact in Oz that it is a matter of when rather than if. The Red Cross volunteers and staff that I met were all lovely people. Was it because we all had the same value set and all wanted to make a difference that helped everyone to get along so well? Part of my time was spent on outreach - knocking on the doors of those affected by the storm to see if people needed help and information on where to get the help they needed. How amazingly resilient and kind people are. Most I spoke to were more concerned about their neighbours than themselves, a few were still deeply traumatised 2 weeks after the event. Whilst extremely tiring, the days were deeply fulfilling and passed quickly. I returned to Tassie grateful for the cool weather, at least or a while, proud to work for the Red Cross, and thankful that Tassie isn't prone to natural disasters in the way that some of the other states seem to be.