It was summer, late 1950s I suspect. We were staying at my uncle’s holiday home, just outside Lorne. The house had “grown” over the years. Lots of rooms. It was an annual holiday treat for our family of six. The house was set back a little bit from the road (the Great Ocean Road), by a creek that flowed into the ocean just over the road – pretty much a private beach. My uncle had dammed the creek, with a bridge over to the house. The bridge – well, I am not sure if you could call it a bridge, maybe more of a ford – was narrow, with no railings. We rarely took the car over, except to unpack and pack the car on arrival and departure.
Behind the house there was a row of pine trees. A couple of the bedrooms were fibro rooms tacked on to the back of the house. These were the rooms that we children used. There were other bedrooms in the main part of the house, one of which our parents used.
One day we were warned of a fire in the area. We contacted my uncle (public phone from Lorne) and he agreed he should head over the following day. As we were due to depart the following day, we partly packed up to leave. Overnight, we could see the glow of the fire on the hill above the house. I could not sleep, and watched for a while with my mother.
It was the following morning that things started to look a bit dangerous. I vaguely remember that we were warned to leave by the authorities, but Mum did not want to leave until our uncle arrived from Melbourne. To remain safe, we finished packing the car, and took it over the road to a parking bay by the beach. We were told to make sure we stayed on the beach – maybe even to head into the water if the fire came right up to the road.
Sometime later a couple of cars pulled up and several guys climbed out. They started putting on long trousers and long sleeved shirts. I queried why they were doing this as I thought they would be too hot. Mum explained that this was to protect themselves. Memory is hazy, but I think Dad was around the house trying to protect it. There was worry about the fire getting into the pine trees, and the fibro out the back.
We were watching the road for our uncle to arrive from Melbourne. We were surprised when he came from the opposite direction! The roads were closed because of the fire, and he had to come a long way around. I cannot remember much after he arrived – I can only assume that we headed off – maybe the long way around.
The house survived that and some subsequent fires, but was eventually lost to fire, but this was after we no longer headed to Lorne for holidays.
Behind the house there was a row of pine trees. A couple of the bedrooms were fibro rooms tacked on to the back of the house. These were the rooms that we children used. There were other bedrooms in the main part of the house, one of which our parents used.
One day we were warned of a fire in the area. We contacted my uncle (public phone from Lorne) and he agreed he should head over the following day. As we were due to depart the following day, we partly packed up to leave. Overnight, we could see the glow of the fire on the hill above the house. I could not sleep, and watched for a while with my mother.
It was the following morning that things started to look a bit dangerous. I vaguely remember that we were warned to leave by the authorities, but Mum did not want to leave until our uncle arrived from Melbourne. To remain safe, we finished packing the car, and took it over the road to a parking bay by the beach. We were told to make sure we stayed on the beach – maybe even to head into the water if the fire came right up to the road.
Sometime later a couple of cars pulled up and several guys climbed out. They started putting on long trousers and long sleeved shirts. I queried why they were doing this as I thought they would be too hot. Mum explained that this was to protect themselves. Memory is hazy, but I think Dad was around the house trying to protect it. There was worry about the fire getting into the pine trees, and the fibro out the back.
We were watching the road for our uncle to arrive from Melbourne. We were surprised when he came from the opposite direction! The roads were closed because of the fire, and he had to come a long way around. I cannot remember much after he arrived – I can only assume that we headed off – maybe the long way around.
The house survived that and some subsequent fires, but was eventually lost to fire, but this was after we no longer headed to Lorne for holidays.
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