Sanjeev visits fire-affected Bargo and Tahmoor

Sanjeev and Nicola meet the team at Tahmoor following the bushfires. (please note: images for this article were taken at a point in time prior to the COVID-19 situation. Our businesses are actively observing all health and safety measures in line with government requirements.)

When catastrophic bushfires affected GFG Alliance facilities south of Sydney, our Chairman, Sanjeev Gupta, wasted no time in showing his support.

On Christmas Eve 2019, GFG Chairman Sanjeev Gupta and his wife, Nicola, visited the bushfire-affected towns of Bargo and Tahmoor in the Wollondilly Shire south of Sydney, Australia. Their aim was show support for the local community, which had been devastated by severe bushfires in the previous days. The Alliance’s coking coal mine, located south of Tahmoor, was impacted by the fires, however, it lost no critical infrastructure.’

“It was a sobering moment to witness the aftermath of the fires and their impact on local communities,” says Sanjeev. “But, in a display of true human spirit, everyone came together to support emergency services and to help those who lost their homes and property. I can’t thank the emergency services teams enough for their tremendous work under extreme conditions, as well as local volunteers supporting the bushfire efforts.”

The experience motivated Sanjeev to donate $250,000 to the Wollondilly Mayoral Fund to assist in the rebuild of the community and to establish the global GFG Alliance Bushfire Relief Appeal.

To date, the appeal has raised over $300,000 in matched funds, with these distributed through the GFG Foundation. Beneficiaries have included leading charities and community-based organisations in bushfire affected areas, helping to assist those in need as they work through the recovery process.

Adelaide Koala Rescue
One of the charities that benefited through our Australian Bushfire Relief Global Appeal was Adelaide Koala Rescue (AKR), which operates a free 24/7 koala rescue service in South Australia. In addition to providing koala rescue and rehab, AKR was established to raise awareness about the plight of koalas and the state of their habitat. Learn more here: https://www.akr.org.au/

Whyalla pouches
It wasn’t just human beings who were affected by the 2019/20 fires. An enormous number of Australian animals were also impacted. Ecologists at the University of Sydney put the number affected between September 2019 and early 2020 at a staggering one billion.

The HR team at Whyalla in South Australia, led by Workforce Development Advisor Bec Harris, did their bit in the wake of the bushfires by making over 500 pouches of different sizes for animals who have been orphaned. The pouches are designed for use by young animals including koalas, kangaroos and wombats who now need somewhere warm and comfortable to stay.