### Steemit has a very real opportunity to help those impacted by the Australian bushfires
And, as a fellow Australian, I am very eager to encourage the Steemit community's support of those impacted by this terrible natural disaster. https://res.cloudinary.com/yaffa-publishing/image/fetch/q_auto:best,c_fit,w_630,f_auto/http%3A%2F%2Fyaffa-cdn.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fyaffadsp%2Fimages%2FdmImage%2FSourceImage%2Fmatthew-abbott2.jpg_{[Src](https://res.cloudinary.com/yaffa-publishing/image/fetch/q_auto:best,c_fit,w_630,f_auto/http%3A%2F%2Fyaffa-cdn.s3.amazonaws.com%2Fyaffadsp%2Fimages%2FdmImage%2FSourceImage%2Fmatthew-abbott2.jpg)} The Australian bushfires to date have been, by far, the most destructive fires this country has seen. The damage toll as of the [14th of January 2020](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2019%E2%80%9320_Australian_bushfire_season) is: - 29 people have died as a result of the fires - The fires have burnt an estimated 18.6 million hectares of land across the country - 5900 buildings have been lost to the fires - An estimated 1 billion native animals have been killed and it is predicted that a number of endangered species will be driven to extinction. https://media.threatpost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/103/2020/01/14151958/koala.png_{[Src](https://media.threatpost.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/103/2020/01/14151958/koala.png)} Needless to say, these fires are unprecedented and recovery from the damage done to date will be challenging and lengthy. At this stage, discussion about the causes of the fires can be left to those in power and who are experts in their field. In my mind, the most vital action to take right now is to ensure that those impacted by the fires are supported in their recovery. So this post and account will not be used to debate the causes of any natural disaster that takes place.

### Who is behind @disasterrelief?
Most of the Steemit community won't know who I am. My primary account is @debtfreein2 and I joined Steemit in 2019. I don't post all that often given that my work requires me to travel extensively which limits the time that I can spend interacting with other users of the platform. However in my short time on this platform I have received enough support and encouragement from the Steemit community to know that there is a real opportunity for Steem and Steemit to be used as an effective means of supporting our people who have lost so much in these fires. I have and continue to work in many regional locations throughout Australia and have seen first hand how the bushfires of 2019 and 2020 have impacted on our country. It is truly shocking, so any support that we can provide people who have lost their homes and livelihoods. Our native wildlife has also been heavily impacted, so providing funding to those organisations that provide care to injured wildlife is also a very worthy thing to do.

### Where will the funds raised via this account go?
All funds from this account or sent to the other currency addresses provided below will be converted to Fiat and donated to the following charities who work hard to support those impacted by the fires. #### [WIRES](https://www.wires.org.au/)
WIRES (NSW Wildlife Information, Rescue and Education Service Inc.) is an organisation that rescues and cares for wildlife and has done for over 30 years. They are one of the largest wildlife rescue organisations in Australia. #### [Rural Fire Service](https://www.rfs.nsw.gov.au/)
The Rural Fire Service is a volunteer-based firefighting agency. The NSW branch of the RFS is responsible for the protection of 95% of the land area of New South Wales. In addition, they respond to structural fires, vehicle fires, motor vehicle accidents and wide range of other emergencies, as well as providing preventative advice to local communities. NSW has been one of the hardest hit states in Australia by these fires so much of the funds raised will go to this State's fire service. However, with the South Australian and Victorian fires also causing considerable damage, funds will also be donated to the respective fire services in these States.

### Natural disasters in the future? #### Steem and Steemit will be mentioned as the fundraising platform used to raise donated funds via this account at every opportunity. I personally believe that fundraising is one excellent use case for Steem and Steemit.
And it should be mentioned that this account hasn't been solely created to donate funds for the Australian bushfires. Sadly, natural disasters are occurring more frequently than ever before. So when disaster strikes, this account will actively work to raise funds for whichever natural disaster requires the most support.

### How to donate funds
Upvoting this and future posts will allow this account to raise funds for donating. However, you may also wish to send Steem or SBD to this account. All Steem and SBD will be converted to Fiat which will then be donated to the above support services. You may also donate other currencies to the addresses below: http://pngimg.com/uploads/bitcoin/bitcoin_PNG18.png #### 1h7T1gr96WvGXkz6CtHQMKfReUMR9WrUv
https://i0.wp.com/dollardestruction.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/litecoin-logo.png?fit=865%2C487&ssl=1 #### LNFVANEZTpqByWpH8dF5bgKinUzcrqrcau
https://www.stickpng.com/assets/images/5a521fb92f93c7a8d5137fd1.png #### 0xD11696a8020055BC6d5DDf9E67DFE7DE1875a78e
https://www.qwealthreport.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/ripple-logo-transparent.png #### rBSypYcQWce24rKy8ufafLj7n1PWTfoK4

Any support that you may provide will be greatly appreciated. **I will provide updates regarding the progress of our donations on a weekly basis.**