One year on from the historic Fire Fight Australia concert event, organisers TEG have announced that an impressive $11.1 million in proceeds has been distributed to bushfire affected communities.
The funds have been shared with key organisations in the following categories; Rescue - rural and regional fire & rescue services in affected states, Relief and Recovery - Red Cross Disaster Relief and Recovery, Rehabilitation - RSPCA Bushfire Appeal, and Rebuilding - The Foundation for Rural & Regional Renewal, PCYC, the BCA’s BizRebuild program.
"It’s hard to believe that Fire Fight Australia was just a year ago, given all that has happened to our industry, let alone the world, since," said TEG CEO Geoff Jones.
"We are proud that the money raised through the concert has made a positive difference to communities that are still recovering from the devastating bushfires of 2019/20.
“Our thanks again to the 23 artists and bands and to over 1500 suppliers and volunteers that helped ensure we were able to achieve that amazing result by providing services at cost or free of charge. It was an enormous effort from the music industry to pull the concert together in five weeks and we are proud of what we achieved through our collective effort."
READ MORE: Review - Here’s What Went Down At Fire Fight Australia
"Many of the CFS volunteers on Kangaroo Island in South Australia who were impacted by the fires were farmers that lost everything - their homes, their livestock, their fencing, all their personal possessions, yet continued to fight the bushfires to try and save their neighbours and other parts of the Island," said CFS Foundation (South Australia) CEO Gloria Berni.
"The money given to them by the CFS Foundation via donations from organisations such as Fire Fight Australia was invaluable in assisting them start to rebuild their lives."
"Fire Fight Australia’s generous donation to Red Cross’ Disaster Relief and Recovery fund in the aftermath of the summer bushfires has made a huge difference, helping people find somewhere safe to live, make urgent repairs to homes or meet medical expenses," added Australian Red Cross Head of Emergency Services' Andrew Coghlan.
"Over the last year, around 5,900 people received one or more grants from the Red Cross fund. Donations also contributed to ensuring trained emergency services teams were able to provide critical support to around 50,000 people in evacuation centres and today, Red Cross teams are still present, helping communities in 46 regions on their road to recovery."
Yesterday, Fire Fight Australia sponsor partner the Sony Foundation Australia announced that it had donated nearly $770,000 beneficiaries to help young people in communities affected by last year's bushfires.
Read our review of Fire Fight Australia here.
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