Rebuilt towns will need fire-proofing

Updated February 19, 2009 11:58:06

Rising as a phoenix from the ashes well, that's what 7,000 people displaced by this month's Victorian bush fires here in Australia, are hoping will happen to their traumatised neighbourhoods and communities.

Over eighteen hundred homes were destroyed, and after nearly two weeks, many are still living in camps. Many hope to return home and rebuild, while others have had enough of life in the beautiful but potentially dangerous countryside. So is it a good idea to replicate burnt out communities in fire-prone areas?

Presenter: Sen Lam
Speaker: Professor Michael Buxton of Melbourne's RMIT University