The fires of 7th February, 2009 are now somewhat distant but are still very real in the minds of many across this Group area. 

The tragedy has had a profound impact on many local CFA people and the district generally. It will forever be a period that many of us will never forget.

We have been most fortunate that the two fire perioda following "Black Saturday" have been quiet with significant summer rain. In fact 2010 was the wettest year ever recorded at the Alexandra post office with around 1200 mm of rain being recorded. The previous wettest was 1974 when 1106 mm fell. Early 2011 has also seen above average rainfall and flooding has been a significant problem. CFA has been assisting with the flooding.

The summer of 2010-2011 has seen prolific growth with one of the best seasons in memory for farmers but the damp conditions has reduced fire danger.

Since the fires of 2009 and following the Bush Fires Royal Commission of which quite a number of local CFA people were involved, some significant changes have occurred as far as incident management is concerned along with public warnings, fire danger ratings, weather districts and many other areas.More changes are likely.

It has taken us sometime to come to grips with the happenings and ramifications of 2009 but as every day passes we can see a gradual return to normality and a willingness to "fire on all cylinders".