The coronavirus has failed to dampen the spirits of charity volunteers who have adopted strict new measures as they work to help rebuild farms in the bushfire-ravaged Snowy Valleys.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Christine Male, who is co-ordinating BlazAid's Adelong camp, said 26 volunteers remain on site and have adopted a strict new routine to allow them to continue helping farmers to replace fences and other infrastructure lost to the summer bushfires.
Since January, more than 3700 volunteers have torn down at least 200 kilometres of old, burned out wire and built more than 100 kilometres of new fencing.
Related:
Mrs Male said no new volunteers were able to join the current team of 26, which has gone into a lockdown.
"Volunteers go directly to the property they are working on and then come directly back to the camp. There's no stopping for a cup of coffee, there's no popping up the street to get a few things at the supermarket," she said.
"We have a designated runner - one of the admin people - from the camp who goes to do the shopping as required. But only one person.
"We're a day-to-day proposition and we're trying to stay one step ahead of the rules, so we have plans in place before any new rules are expected to get there."
Mrs Male said volunteers were BlazeAid's "most valuable asset".
"We have to look after our volunteers. We're also really aware that we don't want to bring any instances of the virus into the community, so we're trying to minimise contact with the community and keep our volunteers and our community as safe as we can," she said.
Snowy Valleys mayor James Hayes said BlazeAid volunteers had contributed a huge amount to the efforts to help the community rebuild.
"As mayor, I am happy to have them on board for as long as they can stay," Councillor Hayes said.
