December has been a very strange month here in Australia, especially in the south in Victoria where the bulk of the BEEZHOUSE crew is based. Unseasonably hot weather, coupled with an ever worsening drought has resulted in devasting bush fires across the state. Indeed, one day hit a maximum of 42.1 (108 old school). Not uncommon in Febraury and March, but not December. The bushfires across the state’s north-east and Gippsland areas have so far blacked out about 750,000 hectares, claiming a number of houses and threatening many townships, not to mention claiming a number of lives.

Thick bushfire smoke cloaked Melbourne on December 20, and as a result led the city to record its poorest air quality since records began. According to The Age newspaper, visibility was reduced to less than two kilometres in the Melbourne CBD and the measure of fine air particles soared up to 7.5 times its normal level, the EPA said. “What we’ve got is an easterly wind system blowing smoke from the bushfires into greater Melbourne,” John Williamson, EPA senior manager of rural services, said. The bushfires that began at the beginning of December have led Melbourne to record its poorest air quality in over 20 years, eclipsing the dust storms of 1983 and the 2003 bushfires, he said. “Certainly the smoke has resulted in the poorest air quality ever recorded since we’ve been recording in Melbourne,” Mr Williamson said.

The smoke has created a sense of doom and gloom across the city. It almost feels like Armageddon, or some such thing. The pictures available on the web don’t do any justice… indeed, the smell of smoke that lingered across the city had to be smelt, to be experienced, to be believed…

This in itself was surreal, but not as surreal as what followed. December 25. Christmas Day.

For three weeks, locals and firefighters had sat trapped, ringed by fire, alone and vulnerable at the top of Mount Buller. Day after day, the bush burned in the valley below, the flames making charge after charge up the slopes, fanned by hot winds. But then, at Christmas time, it happened. The winds eased, the prayed-for rains came, and the fire threat abated. On Christmas Day itself, it snowed. Lightly at first, but stronger as the day progressed, coating the mountaintop in an unseasonal white blanket. THIS was the Christmas miracle — or, at least, the Australian bush version.

As it snowed outside, those on top of the mountain sat down to Christmas lunch, and relaxed for the first time in more than three weeks. Country Fire Authority volunteer and Mount Buller local Carly Reudavey said the fire fight had been a stressful time for all. “It was intense up here for a long time, really intense. Nobody up here has had a day off in 25 days.” Luke Corbett said the rain and snow had been the break everybody needed. “It’s been pretty hard, the fire was burning out there, but there was smoke everywhere so you didn’t know exactly where it was, it was hot and windy. This (weather) has come at the exactly the right time.”

Elsewhere around the state, similar thanks were being given to a higher authority as the rain and cooler weather eased the fire threat. The Gippsland fire threat abated with the change in weather and the fire at Bright-Tawonga Gap also weakened. However, CFA state duty officer John Athorn warned that the fires would not be extinguished by the rain, and could flare up again quickly if conditions worsened.

A most surreal end, to the most surreal of months.