A new bushfire museum and education centre will be created to raise awareness of the history, stories and lessons of Black Saturday and the 1983 Ash Wednesday bushfires, the 1969 Lara fire and 1939 Black Friday bushfires.
This Thursday, 7 February marks a decade since the 2009 Black Saturday fires which changed our state forever.
Minister for Emergency Services Lisa Neville said: “This is about remembering those lives lost a decade ago and sharing the stories of those communities affected by the 2009 Victorian Bushfires.”
The Bushfire Anniversary Advisory Group has recommended creating a bushfire museum with a reflective space to commemorate our past and educate generations into the future.
“This museum will help bring together the experiences, knowledge and stories of how fire has shaped our state and how it will continue to impact us for generations to come,” Neville said.
The advisory group is chaired by John Brumby AO and includes former Deputy Premier and Minister for Emergency Services Pat McNamara, Ms Susan Pascoe AM and Mr Ben Hubbard.
Victorians will have an opportunity to provide input into the project through an extensive community consultation process that will begin in the coming months.
This input will help inform future planning and design work – a process that will be led by Creative Victoria in consultation with the Office for the Victorian Government Architect.
The catastrophic 2009 bushfires devastated the state, with 173 people losing their lives and countless more impacted.
The ten-year anniversary is an important opportunity to reflect and remember the impact of those fires, which continues to be felt to this day.
The museum will also raise awareness of bushfires that have impacted Victoria, including the
Museums Victoria will be showing select objects from its Victorian Bushfires Collection as part of its upcoming From the Heart temporary exhibition to mark the ten-year anniversary. The exhibition opens on 5 February at Melbourne Museum.
