Kangaroo Island bushfire turns tourists’ beach visit into fight for survival

An afternoon spent on an idyllic beach turned into a fight for survival for tourists trapped by a Kangaroo Island bushfires.

The scorched northern coastline of the Kangaroo Island following bushfires ignited by lighting. Picture: Leon Bignell

A tourist, who was among four people rescued from a ferocious Kangaroo Island bushfire, had only arrived on the island that day hoping for “a nice day” on the beach.

Instead a towering wall of suffocating smoke spewed from a fast-moving fire trapped German resident Stefan, 30, his Spanish girlfriend Belen, 28, a 22-year-old French tourist and Kangaroo Island resident Caroline Taylor on Western River Cove.

Stefan, who declined to give his surname, said he and Belen had arrived with their campervan at KI on Friday morning and had heard about the idyllic Western River Cove - a sheltered crescent of pristine sand on the KI’s north-west.

“We just wanted to have a nice day on the beach,” he said. “We arrived about 12 o’clock at the beach, had a nap, woke up, went to the water, turned around and saw black smoke.

“When we wanted to leave with the car, we didn’t want to drive into the smoke or the fire, we went back (to the cove) and that’s when we saw Caroline and she said that’s (staying on the beach) is probably safest … luckily it turned out alright.”

Caroline Taylor took this photo at Western River Cove on Friday while seeking refuge from the Kangaroo Island fire. Picture: Caroline Taylor

The charred headland shows how close the fire came to the beach and Ms Taylor. Picture: Caroline Taylor

Ms Taylor told the Sunday Mailof how she fled her house and sought refuge in the sea.

CFS volunteer Michael Swaine of the Parndana brigade, responding to reports that Ms Taylor had returned to her house, drove by himself through the fires to rescue Ms Taylor and the backpackers as night approached.

The tourists slept at the Parndana school on Friday night and KI mayor Michael Pengilly took them to Kingscote on Saturday morning where they were accommodated at the Dragonfly Guesthouse free of charge.

A second-hand shop provided the trio with clothes.

“Everyone has been so nice,” Stefan said. “I’ve told my parents we’re safe … but we’ve left it at that, and not worried them too much.”

Caroline Taylor took this photo of the fire approaching her Western River home. Embers fell on her property forcing her to flee to the beach. Picture: Caroline Taylor

Caroline Taylor's Western River house, looking south, stands out like an oasis in a charred landscape having miraculously survived a fire on Kangaroo Island. Picture: Caroline Taylor

Police took Stefan and Belen, who were reunited with Ms Taylor, to collect their campervan.

The pair arrived in Melbourne on December 14 and had travelled along the Great Ocean Rd to KI. They head to the mainland on Christmas Eve, hope to see and leave Australia on January 4.

The French tourist was travelling alone.

Ms Taylor’s house and sheep survived the fire, which damaged some fencing, a footbridge and trees.