My parents met dozens of Aussies during their trip Down Under a few years ago, including a couple and their son, Aidan. Aidan, a gran prix racing enthusiast, died from Cystic Fibrosis, but left behind a treasure trove of memories for his parents and loved ones. Fortunately, his parents decided to store those memories outside of their home late last year.
As of this week, they no longer have a home. In a matter of minutes, they went from spectators to victims of the Aussie Bushfires that have claimed over 170 lives. They decided to escape to the north, while others in their area went south. They survived; many of their neighbors did not.
Here's what Aidan's father had to say in an email to friends:
(We) fled at around 5pm on Saturday - the roar of the fire at the back of our hill was so frightening but we managed - after several detours due to fire and fallen trees - and having the car damaged by falling, burning branches - to get to Yea. Sounds dramatic and scary - but nothing compared to what we have seen others experience on the news.
Yesterday, they went back to see if anything could be salvaged from the devastation:
So now it's hit - we are both devastated - I think we held on to a belief that it might only be partially gone, or we might find things we could salvage - but everything we picked up simply crumbled to dust.
They lost everything, including a 6000+ book collection. But Aidan's treasures are safe.
As horrible as losing a house and all our belongings, it's weird, but because of what happened with Aidan, we do have a bit of "ho-hum" happening about this - hard to explain.
Pictured above (from the top): the bushfire approaches, it rages one minute later, the devastation, Yarra Valley continues to burn
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