The Forest Fire

Lisa walked out onto the terrace and gazed at the plumes of smoke coming from the forest on the other side of the mountain. Her husband Gabriel, along with many of the other farmers from the village, was out helping the fire brigade to try to extinguish the fire. Lisa sighed. It was worrying that the fire seemed to be getting closer but she told herself that despite the many fires in the area every summer, the village had never been under threat. She went back indoors to start making lunch.

Her children came running through the door just as she was setting the table. James and Maria were excited about the fire in the distance and kept begging their mother to take them there to get a closer look. "It will be out before you've finished your lunch", she told them. But when she looked out of the kitchen window as she was doing the dishes, she could see that not only was the fire still burning, but she could now see flames, as well as thick smoke, coming from behind the mountain.

Lisa tried to call her husband on his mobile phone but he didn't answer. She realised that he was probably too busy to have a conversation with her at that moment. But she needed to talk to somebody about the fire. Was the increasing panic that she was feeling just an over-reaction? Or were others beginning to question the safety of the village, too? The only way to find out was to go down to the local cafe in the square, where many of the village residents got together to chat and pass the time. Lisa called the children and told them they were going for a walk.

A small crowd had gathered in the square. Lisa walked over to where a group of women were standing watching the progress of the flames across the mountainside. Children were running up and down the square playing a game of tag, unaware of any danger from the fire in the distance. Lisa asked one of the women her opinion on the risk to their homes. The woman shrugged her shoulders. "The wind will change direction, it always does", she said. Lisa wasn't convinced, but didn't want to sound like a fool, or worse, a coward.

As she walked back towards her home, Lisa decided that she'd rather be laughed at than risk the safety of her children. With the children strapped securely into the back seat, Lisa drove the car onto the main road out of the village. She hadn't got very far before her worst fears were confirmed. Ahead of her, Lisa could see that the fire had reached the road only a few kilometres from the village. Lisa tried to remain calm, even though she felt sick with fear. As there was no way she could continue down the road, she returned to the village to raise the alarm.

Lisa would have liked, at that moment, to run through the village screaming in terror. Instead, she stuck her trembling hands in her pockets and tried to look relaxed because James and Maria had already picked up on her growing concern and had become unusually quiet. They walked quickly back to the main square in silence. She gave her news about the fire reaching the outskirts of the village to the cafe owner. He was a kind and sensible man and he patted Lisa's arm reassuringly as he told her that he would inform the authorities.

The air in the village began to thicken from the smoke of the approaching fire. Lisa's fear suddenly turned into something quite different. How could they just leave the village when they knew that all the residents were trapped and helpless? Then she heard it. A soft whirring sound in the distance began to grow louder, until it was unmistakable that helicopters were on their way. Lisa knew she should feel relieved that they would soon be rescued, but she was just too frustrated by the slow response of the authorities to feel anything but disgust and fury.

Дата добавления: 2015-11-14