In the days before the catastrophic Victoria bushfires began to ravage the state’s Central Highlands region, Harcourt local Nick O’Brien began to worry about the fires threatening his home.
But little did he know that just a fortnight later, his beloved mudbrick home that sat on four hectares of land just outside of town would be completely destroyed when the Ravenswood South bushfire raged through on the afternoon of January 9.
“That morning the fire was still 2.4km from my house and I figured the freeway would be a natural fire break,” Nick tells Woman’s Day.
“But then the wind shifted and the fire marched into Harcourt. When that wind change happened, that’s when I became nervous because I could see the smoke heading my way.”
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As the blaze closed in on his home, Nick, 64, quickly grabbed his three dogs and fled to safety at his wife Jenny’s work in nearby Bendigo.
The following morning, Nick returned to his home to find it completely destroyed.
“We lost everything,” Nick says, noting his house was the only one on his street to be reduced to ash.
“Everyone says you should pack a bag with all the essentials like passports and photos, but that morning, I didn’t think the fire would get to us.”
SHINING GENEROSITY
While Nick, Jenny and his six kids continue to process the loss of their family home, the tight-knit community of Harcourt have been the “panacea to the pain”.
“The town’s generosity has been nothing short of amazing,” Nick says tearily.
“I’ve had so many calls from friends and neighbours offering rooms, food, water – just everything. It’s been so humbling.”
While Nick and Jenny begin the slow process of rebuilding, their community is rallying around them and the 46 other Harcourt locals that lost their homes.
One neighbour, a builder, offered to help clear his land, while a friend has lent their caravan for them to stay in once power is restored to their block of land.
A GoFundMe organised by Nick’s three eldest children has even raised more than $155,000 at the time of writing.
A kind stranger also left a $1000 voucher at a clothing store for Nick, so he could replace his wardrobe, which brought Nick to tears at the register.
“There’s so much bad news and evil in the world, but then you get these moments where humanity and generosity shines through completely unfiltered,” tells Nick.
“It’s just phenomenal.”
SHARING THE LOVE WITH MUSIC
In the neighbouring community of Castlemaine, which is just 15 minutes away, a group of local musicians are putting on a concert called Share the Love to raise money and the spirits of locals in the bushfire-ravaged communities.
“It’s not a matter of how much money we raise, it’s more about bringing the community together,” the fundraiser concert’s organiser and community radio presenter, Pete Dawson, tells Woman’s Day.
“Music is always a great healer.”
The inspiration for the concert came from learning his friend, Wendy Oates, had lost her Harcourt home in the bushfires.
“I got in touch with Wendy and her sister Julie to see if they were happy with us to go ahead with the concert and they said, ‘Do it for the whole of Harcourt,’” Pete tells.
While Pete hasn’t set a concrete date for the performance, he says many local residents, businesses and musicians have offered to pitch in.
“When I put the call out for musicians to put their hands up, I was absolutely inundated with responses from musicians and artists saying they’ll donate artwork to be auctioned off,” says Pete.
“I’ve even had caterers let me know they’ll take care of that if we need it.
“People here in Castlemaine really look after each other.”
