SIR IVAN BUSHFIRE & RECOVERY SIX MONTHS ON

Key Points:

Sir Ivan Bushfire burned for a month straight.
Tore through 55 000 hectares of farming land in Western NSW.
It wrecked approximately 6000 kilometres of fencing and affected almost 140 properties.
It will take years to fully recover from the damage caused.

The Sir Ivan Bushfire was one of the most horrific natural disasters of 2017, burning for almost the entire month of February. The fire tore through 55 000 hectares of farming land in Western NSW, destroying more than 5000 head of cattle and sheep. 57 000 kilometres of fencing was destroyed along with 138 properties being affected.

Among those properties affected were the Saunders’ family property located just 20kms down Moorefield Road in Coolah, NSW. On Sunday February 12, the Saunders lives were to be changed forever.

Owners Emma and Pete Saunders were devastated and heartbroken when they found out there cattle property where they watched their three children, Ben, Emily and Albert grow up, was soon to become a perished piece of land.

With strong, gusty winds and 40 degree heat, the Saunders still held on to a small piece of hope that they would come back to a house, however they knew the chances were very slim when flames roaring down the hill became visible and the fire made its way down into the thick scrub.

“It was pretty heartbreaking, we had been there a long time, it just got to the point where we had to save ourselves. We got evacuation orders, so we grabbed our essentials; clothes, photos, the dogs, and off we went” - Emma Saunders

The Saunders had other investments which contributed to their income however relying on cattle prices for their main source of it was gone, when 80 per cent of the 200 head of cattle on the property perished in the fire. Gates were left open so they had some chance of escape, but what was left remaining had to be put down due to being badly injured and singed by flames.

“The stock were insured but in saying that, you don’t get as much back as what you put in” - Emma Saunders.

The family had to leave their property and stay with a friend in Coolah itself. Initially, after the fire had extinguished and many nerve-wracking days later, Emma and Pete were to head out and find they had lost all 2000 acres of land and that all 30kms of fencing was gone, burnt and unrepairable.

Everything the Saunders had worked for, earned and lived for was gone and nothing but ash and a few sheets of corrugated iron were left lying on the ground. Insurance covered them but because it being such an old house with lots of asbestos sheeting in it, the clean up bill was phenomenal.

“We’ve had a very hard time and its been a lot of effort trying to clear everything up, 6 months on and it’s still a huge mess” - Emma Saunders.

However things are looking up six months on from this horrific event. Emma and Pete Saunders and their children are now living on another property down Neilrex Road located just outside of Coolah. Emma manages the property which means that her and her family are able to live in the house out there, allowing them to find their feet. There is still a long way to go with cleaning up and sorting things out but the family are doing well. They may have lost everything, but they still have each other.

“So, now we’ve got somewhere to live we are starting to find our feet again, everything is starting to sort itself out, but yeah it has been a very, very difficult time” - Emma Saunders.

Life after the Sir Ivan Bushfire http://www.theland.com.au/story/4749320/life-after-sir-ivan/
Cost of the Sir Ivan Fire http://www.theland.com.au/story/4479066/counting-the-cost-of-the-sir-ivan-fire-photos/