Canberra poet ANDREW GUILD is moved to verse with a poem dedicated to Australia’s firefighters — especially to those who lost their lives during the bushfires of 2019-2020. RIP Samuel McPaul, Geoffrey Keaton and Andrew O’Dwyer.

Deadly Bushfires and Brave Firefighters

The summer sun is blazing hot,

In the air there’s a smoky smell,

As fires are raging everywhere

And our land is as hot as hell

The inferno is quickly spreading,

For the bush is parched and dry,

Strong winds are blowing flames around,

And embers are falling from the sky

Batemans Bay is being threatened,

Mallacoota’s folk are on the beach,

Kangaroo Island is badly scorched —

It seems that nowhere is out of reach

A little baby is missing a father,

A sad parent grieves for a son,

As a firefighter has lost his life

Doing brave work which must be done

The fire brigades are working hard,

To protect all of us, they strive —

And whilst Australia now is hurting,

In the end, we will survive.