By ERWIN CHLANDA
Three dwellings and several vehicles were destroyed in Colonel Rose Drive, in the rural area near the airport, in yesterday’s blaze.
No-one was injured or killed but mechanic Sean Bathern (at right) returned from town in the afternoon to find much his family’s home and most of his possessions destroyed.
He says he is not insured.
The fire, coming from the east, had swept through the residential complex and left only a donga mostly intact.
Mr Bathern says it is believed that someone had lit the blaze near the Todd River, possibly in an ill-fatded attempt at precautionary burning.
His dwellings were surrounded on three sides by buffel grass in a large expanse to the banks of the river.
Across a dirt road to the west is the rural block of Mark Weippert (at left), in Schaber Road.
He and helpers were frantic putting out spot fires on the block, lit by embers blown across by the medium-strength wind, mostly from the east.
Photo below by Tahnee Passmore-Barns
Sorry to hear. Heart braking. I may suggest that insurance is in any circumstance a good “savings” against any loss and damage that allows to start again.
As some may know my daughter had lost her humble home and all contents and childhood possessions in the Mallacoota fire of New Year 2020.
Today she can enjoy a lovely new home because of the “insurance”.
I know someone living in that Range View Estate who mentioned that every year his insurance goes up. He is annoyed as he’s been with the same company for years, has never needed to make a claim yet the bill still goes up. If I recall correctly he said the price of insurance had become like three or four thousand dollars a year.
Anyway, last year he decided to risk not getting insurance due to wanting to save money. He had like years and years of zero claims to date. Ah, but the moment he stopped the insurance Murphy’s Law occurred.
It only took one strong gust of a windy afternoon. He had many gusts before too. Alas newly placed roof sheets that were just put up to one structure without screws, (they were going up all at once later), all ended up in the garden and some were all twisted or had damaged another structure.
My point is I think people become complacent when they’ve had years of no issues and to save on costs insurance if overlooked as a non essential; especially when it’s in the thousands.
Riverside properties have it worst. I forgot where I read it but someone in the news, near the river, from memory his premiums go up double. Like from memory it was like previously $3000 then all of a sudden like $6000, per year!
I guess in other words insurance is a bit like roulette.