EXCLUSIVE
Ten journalist Tegan George became suicidal and turned to alcohol after being traumatized by the devastating bushfires of 2019/2020, new court documents claim.
The former Canberra political reporter said she was haunted by the harrowing scenes she saw while covering the catastrophic fires around the NSW south coast for Ten.
She said she suffered from PTSD and nightmares after seeing apocalyptic scenes of dead livestock killed in the fires and terrified families fighting for their lives and homes.
A panicked local resident even threatened to shoot others during an argument over fuel as they desperately tried to escape the flames, court documents reveal.
George claimed she was 'obligated' to file a harrowing report about a father and son who tragically died while trying to protect their dairy farm from fire.
Former Canberra political reporter Tegan George says she is haunted by the harrowing scenes she saw while covering the catastrophic fires around the NSW south coast.
But George said TV bosses still told her to drive into danger zones at the height of the fire crisis, despite safety fears and ash falling from the black sky above.
She claims she and a colleague ignored an instruction from Canberra news chiefs to enter Bermagui, which had already been evacuated after fire circled it.
But they still had to dodge the flames by weaving along remote roads to safety – and never knew if they were heading into an inferno, she claimed.
George, 38, is now suing for personal injury caused by Ten's alleged negligence and breach of duty of care in a new legal action in the ACT Supreme Court against the network.
She filed another lawsuit in the Federal Court in February 2022, claiming Ten's former political editor Peter van Onselen, 47, had sabotaged her career and tried to turn another reporter into a star to “get back at her”.
Dr. van Onselen is one of several senior employees named in the lawsuit, which alleges Ten failed to provide her with a safe working environment at the Canberra station.
He is named again in the latest legal action, which was launched in March this year with an updated October statement of claim linking the two cases.
George said the trauma of the bushfires in Bega, Bermagui, Merimbula and Cobargo, which she reported on between January 1 and 5, 2020, devastated her mental health and career.
Her claim against Ten stated that the trauma left her “intermittently incapacitated from February 27, 2020 and subsequently completely incapacitated since June 7, 2021.”
The experience is said to have left her with post-traumatic stress disorder, major depressive disorder, general anxiety disorder and alcohol abuse/dependence.
She said she now suffers from panic attacks and suicidal thoughts and had to be admitted to full-time psychiatric care.
Tegan George says she suffered from PTSD and nightmares after seeing apocalyptic scenes of dead livestock dying in the fires and terrified families fighting for their lives and homes
Ten news reporter Tegan George became suicidal and turned to booze after being traumatized by the devastating 2019/2020 bushfires, new court documents claim
George claimed TV bosses ordered her to drive into danger zones at the height of the fire crisis, despite safety fears and ash falling from the black sky above
She still has “disturbing dreams” about the bushfires and is haunted by the memories of the suffering she witnessed and personally experienced.
Her legal action says she is unable to sleep as a result, has difficulty concentrating or focusing her attention, and has “numbness on the left side of her body.”
She is still unable to work, court documents show, and she has “feelings of hopelessness, helplessness and worthlessness.”
She has “decreased energy, motivation, interest and involvement in enjoyable activities,” the court documents allege, and has suffered from headaches and jaw pain.
George needs to take several medications, including an 'increased dose' of the antidepressants fluoxetine and venlafaxine, the sedative diazepam and the anti-panic attack/PTSD drug Sertraline.
The legal action alleges that Ten ignored George's symptoms of “psychological disorders” and failed to protect her from criticism of her work by Dr. Van Onselen and former editor-in-chief Anthony Murdoch.
George also claimed that her sick leave, caused by the trauma, was questioned by Ross Dagan, the TV station's news editor.
She claimed she was pressured into becoming involved in a workplace action against a colleague 'against her will'.
She said Ten failed in her duty of care to her by failing to provide her with bushfire training before she was deployed to cover the fires, failing to minimize the risk of injury and failing to recognize the risk to her health and safety.
“A reasonable person would have recognized that a person of ordinary fortitude could suffer from a recognized psychiatric illness if reasonable care was not exercised,” the lawsuit said.
'But for the [trauma]she would not have developed the psychological response to subsequent workplace events that she ultimately did – culminating in her incapacitation on June 7, 2021.”
Tegan George says the trauma of the Bega, Bermagui, Merimbula and Cobargo bushfires, which she covered between January 1 and 5, 2020, devastated her mental health and career
She and a colleague had to dodge the flames by weaving along remote roads to safety – and never knew if they were heading into an inferno, she claims.
Tegan George's lawsuit claims the experience left her with post-traumatic stress disorder, major depressive disorder, general anxiety disorder and alcohol abuse/dependence
Ten's formal defense denies all allegations of negligence and says George's claim relies on the 'benefit of hindsight'.
It adds: 'There were no reasonable concurrent “warning signs” for the defendant.'
The bushfire lawsuit against Ten has been brought through Sneddon Hall & Gallop Lawyers in Canberra, a different law firm to George's previous legal action against Ten, which is being conducted by Maurice Blackburn Lawyers.
A spokesperson for Ms George told Ny Breaking Australia this was her latest attempt to expose “the appalling way” Ten allegedly treats its staff.
“Both lawsuits have caused Ms. George significant stress and ill health,” a spokesman for Maurice Blackburn said.
'She is committed to pursuing both cases to expose the appalling way in which Network Ten treats its staff, especially female journalists, and to expose how the network has enabled a workplace culture that is hostile and is toxic towards women.”
Ny Breaking Australia has contacted Ten for comment.