Fire in the Simpson

It looks like theres a fire approaching from the South West. It's shaped like an enourmous red cross bow, stretching almost the entire width of the Simpson Desert, with the arrow lined up straight for us. The NAFI site on the internet will show you the fire site, which appears to have burnt more than a third of the Simpson Desert already. The fuel load is so high after all the rains, that it's unlikely to stop by itself. Ethabuka will get hit first, it's currently about 70 kms away. We've got a grader going in to make earth breaks around the borders and through the middle. 80 percent of the property was burnt out just before we got there last time, and it sure would be nice to not incinerate the remaining 20% which hasn't been burnt for a lot longer, and is Channel Country vegetation, which is very important in terms of its conservation values. Not that the dunefields aren't. They carry one of the highest diversities of reptile diversity in the world, not to mention all the small cute and cuddly species which still manage to exist out here. The dunefields are currently looking stunning, and it's hard to imagine them returning to the red wastefield with blackened stumps that they were 8 years ago. Cravens Peak would be next to burn, which doesn't bear thinking about. It doesn't make me feel so good either, being so remote with the kids and such a big fire eating it's way towards us. I do keep imagining the enormous wave of rats running in front of the flames! But really, they would probably go to ground, and the wave will really be full of camels. Al should stand out there on the border with his shotgun....