What to Save in a Bushfire
The Rainforest is Burning
I never thought it would happen in the Byron hinterland.
We have a beautiful family farm in what is usually rolling green hills.
We’ve replanted lush rainforest with towering trees and tangled vines. A creek with hidden platypus winds its way through grassy paddocks. The birdsong in the morning always lifts my spirit.
It’s an idyllic setting of macadamia and coffee farms, grazing cows and tiny community halls where we gather to watch films, do yoga, sing, dance and have trivia nights. Green hills turned brown, the grass dry, animals and the land thirsty.
I’ve never seen the Byron hills like this before.
It has never been a place where I’ve felt under threat from bushfire. And now it is.
On a catastrophic fire danger day it was predicted that the Mt Nardi fire in the Nightcap National Park would move off the ridge and down into the peaceful farmland where my friends and family live.
Never before did I ever believe we would be in danger of our house being destroyed. Never before did I imagine that we could lose everything we own in a matter of hours. Never before did I think that the rainforest could burn.
We filled the cars with precious things. Blocked the gutters and put wet towels below the doors and windows. Cleared the gardens and put together an emergency evacuation plan.
For the first time I felt what it would be like to lose my family home. My heart broke a little bit.
The home that my dad designed and built from the ground up using recycled materials. A place filled with love and happy memories and endless cups of tea. A retreat where friends come to visit and fall asleep on the verandah.
Swimming in the river, mud pies and colouring books as children.
And all the love. There is so much love in this home.
We left to stay by the beach on the day the fire threatened. I hugged the house. Whispered my gratitude for keeping me safe, for all of the precious memories, for the love it holds in its timber beams.
I put my groodle Honey in the car and took one last look back as we drove away from the farm.
I didn’t know if we would see it again.
And we did. The house is still standing.
But many other homes across Australia have been reduced to ashes. Lives lost. Livelihoods ruined. And so much to rebuild.
What I felt was the love and support of the Byron community. My neighbours reaching out to help each other. Support for our local fire station and their tireless work to protect us.
On the day when it felt so close to losing everything we kept reaching out to each other. The fire has reached this spot. A pile of macadamia mulch has caught alight. The wind has changed direction.
What did I save in the fire? My dog Honey, a few clothes, a surfboard, photo albums. So few things.
I know I’m meant to say it’s just a house. But it’s more than that to me.
It is my connection to the place and people I love. I know all of its quirky nooks and crannies. It’s where I feel safe and loved and protected. Wherever I am in the world, I know it’s there. Waiting to welcome me home.
My heart goes out to everyone who has lost something in the fires. A house. A loved one.
The Byron community is coming together to support those in need. I never thought it would happen here. But now it has.
I watched the spreading smoke. The flames burning so close to our farm.
I’m grateful that my home was saved.
I know that I would survive. That a few possessions could carry me. But I’m so relieved that I don’t have to rebuild.
Now I can help others instead.
You can donate to support Red Cross' disaster relief and recovery work.
By Kate Love