McMillan MP Russell Broadbent delivers a heartfelt speech in parliament.By Melissa Grant
MCMILLAN MP Russell Broadbent drew on his own memories and personal experiences of Ash Wednesday when speaking about Black Saturday in Parliament last week.
The long-time Pakenham resident’s heartfelt speech – applauded by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd – was inspired by family members and CFA officers involved in the 1983 tragedy.
“I spoke in the way my father-in-law N.N. (Noel) Webster (then Pakenham CFA captain) would’ve spoken after Ash Wednesday, or Eric Bumpstead, the captain of the Upper Beaconsfield fire brigade at the time,” he told the Gazette.
Mr Broadbent said he was thinking of N.N.’s cousin Ranald – a burns victim of the Ash Wednesday fires – when he delivered the speech.
“I knew Ranald was listening,” he said.
A photograph of Ranald’s charred, swollen face became a symbol of the devastation of the Ash Wednesday fires. After being given a four per cent chance of survival, Ranald made a complete recovery and became a well-known and respected spokesman for burns victims.
In Parliament on Tuesday 10 February, Mr Broadbent talked about his experiences during Ash Wednesday as a volunteer firefighter as well as the ferocious Bunyip State Park blaze last fortnight.
“I knew that the fire was out of the Bunyip Ridge state forests and on the move.
“ I was immediately drawn back to that day at (Upper) Beaconsfield when my team was pulled from the fire 15 minutes before the crews that went in before us died,” he said.
Mr Broadbent said he was ready to evacuate his Pakenham home as the Bunyip State Park blaze burnt out of control on Saturday 7 February.
He said to his wife Bronwyn: “Get the dog, get the bucket, put it in the car. The moment we see anything go up to our north, we move.”
Mr Broadbent urged Victorians to come together at this time of “unprecedented trauma”.
“To those who pray, I say: pray now; do not leave it until next Sunday. To those who fight, I say: all strength to your arm; stay safe. To those who serve, I say: we in this Parliament stand with you as one,” he said.
Mr Broadbent said it was important for Australians to know that parliamentarians cared about those affected by the bushfire tragedy.
Some MPs had been touched personally and the hearts of others were breaking for them, he said.
