On Friday morning, Melissa Pouliot had a "tough moment" while standing in front of her bookshelf.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The author and former Horsham resident had to decide which of her cherished books from a lifetime of reading to take - and which to leave behind - as her family left their Tathra home on the NSW south coast.
Several bushfires are burning out of control near the area.
"We live on a rural block and we're surrounded by national park. At this stage the fires haven't impacted on our area directly, but there are fires within 30 kilometres," Mrs Pouliot said.
"Because they are such big fires, it's quite a concern. We had a really scary day on New Year's Eve, so we packed and filled the house's gutters with water but we ended up being able to stay.
"Now we've decided to leave voluntarily because we are expecting a really bad day on Saturday. We didn't feel... equipped to fight a fire if it got into where we lived. Because resources are so stretched with Rural Fire Service volunteers we can't expect there to be a fire truck on our doorstep."
She described the feeling of preparing to leave as "surreal".
"There was this burst of energy packing everything, and then we were just waiting around on New Year's Eve listening to the radio. The waiting is agonising," she said.
"Driving off this morning was heartbreaking. We are trying to be as positive as we can while preparing for the worst. We'll just have to hope (our house) is still there when we get back."
Mrs Pouliot said she, husband Cam, 15-year-old son Tom and 10-year-old daughter Laura would head to outback Queensland, where they had a fencing depot. She said her eldest son Jake and dog Pipi were staying on the south coast with close friends at South Pambula.
"We've also got some equipment up there that we will take back to the coast - a generator and a couple of other things - because these fires are going to burn for a long time," she said.
Mrs Pouliot moved to Tathra in July 2009, six months after her Vectis home came close to being affected by the Remlaw Road fire in Horsham on Black Saturday.
"That fire started a kilometre away, but the wind was going in the opposite direction, so we were very very lucky on that day," she said.
"In March 2018 was the Tathra fire and more than 70 homes were destroyed. We were lucky again, the wind changed, so we didn't have to leave our home, but that was a very close call as well, and obviously a lot of people were significantly impacted.
"Because we had been through that fire, we did have a good concept of being prepared and having things packed."
While you're with us, you can now receive updates straight to your inbox twice weekly from the Wimmera Mail-Times. To make sure you're up-to-date with all the news from across the Wimmera, sign up below.
Alexander Darling
Alexander has been a member of the Wimmera Mail-Times' editorial team since December 2018, covering politics, business and property among other rounds. He is a passionate St.Kilda and rock and roll fan, and has previously worked as a radio reporter in Port Macquarie and Gosford, NSW.
Alexander has been a member of the Wimmera Mail-Times' editorial team since December 2018, covering politics, business and property among other rounds. He is a passionate St.Kilda and rock and roll fan, and has previously worked as a radio reporter in Port Macquarie and Gosford, NSW.
