red steer
noun Australian
A destructive fire on scrubland or in a forest, especially one that spreads rapidly: I checked to see whether my two acacias had survived the red steer...
- Fire is the genie of the bush, the red steer jumping the fence and running amok.
- The red steer hasn't visited the farms in any serious way since Black Saturday in 1938.
- Swagmen are reported to be letting loose the 'red steer' after being refused rations by station owners.
Origin
1930s: from red + steer2, symbolic of the fire as a farm animal that escapes confinement and rampages over land, causing destruction.