The summer of 1983 brought in its wake the catastrophic Ash Wednesday Fires.

On that day Victoria saw tragedy, heroism, hopelessness and miracles.

Ten years later, a small group of creative and dedicated Anglesea residents who experienced the trauma approached me about this book.

I cannot speak for civilians -this book will do that -but the experiences of Ash Wednesday are still stark in the memories of the firefighters who were involved. In my role as Deputy Chairman of the CFA, I have often heard their experiences, and come to know the great commitment and sacrifice CFA personnel are capable of.

Some of them saw their own homes burn as they fought with their brigades for the greater good of their communities. These firefighters put the safety of their community ahead of their own.

The seriousness of their commitment became tragically obvious on Ash Wednesday. Fourteen CFA volunteer firefighters lost their lives in the line of duty, along with 32 civilians and a casual firefighter who had joined the CFA firefighters on Ash Wednesday .

CFA firefighters are not "heroes ". They consider themselves ordinary people - your friend, your next-door-neighbour, your local businessman, solicitor, tradesman. They, and the people who have contributed to this book, have shown that ordinary people can find enormous reservoirs of courage and resilience when faced witfi the extraordinary .

I commend "Ashes of Memory" to you as the simple but memorable story of ordinary Victorians in exceptional times.

T.A. Whiting
DEPUTY CHAIRMAN
Country Fire Authority
1993

© 2003