Title: Disasters that changed Australia /
Authors: Evans, Richard
Publisher: Melbourne University Publishing,
Year: 2009
Subjects: Disasters Australia.; Natural disasters Australia.; Railroad accidents Australia.; Aircraft accidents Australia.; Forest fires Australia.; Floods Australia.; Australia History.
Abstract: From natural phenomenon such as Cyclone Tracy, and the Ash Wednesday and Black Friday fires, to key moments in our military history such as Flanders in 1917, and the fall of Singapore, this is an essential guide to understanding the people, the ideas and the events that defined the course of Australia's history.
Contents: Divine wind: Cyclone Tracy, 1974 -- "Just slaughter': Flanders, 1917 -- Destroying the promised land: the great resource crash, c.40,000 BC -- The Tasmanian genocide: 1804-1838 -- Feral nation: rabbits, 1859 to the present -- Black Friday, 1939 and beyond -- The great white elephant: the Snowy Mountains scheme, 1949-1974 -- Foo'ls gold: Montreal Olympic Games, 1976 -- The great drought: 2002 to the present.