Lucky escape as flames stop 1m away

A family evacuated amid yesterday’s catastrophic bushfires said they had just five minutes to grab the family dog and medication before fleeing.

A FAMILY evacuated amid yesterday’s catastrophic bushfires have returned home to find the flames stopped just one metre from their house.

Jenny and Darryl Andersen from Kabra, west of Rockhampton, this morning returned to find their property scorched, with gardens and fences destroyed but their home unscathed.

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Mrs Andersen broke down as she told The Courier-Mail she had just five minutes to grab the family dog Little Bit and her medication before fleeing.

Jenny and Darryl Andersen inspect the damage at their Kabra property. Picture: Vanessa Marsh

“By the time I got to the bottom of the driveway I couldn’t see anything because of the smoke,” she said.

“It was very scary because it all happened so fast.”

The couple, who spent the night with friends, returned this morning to assess the damage, not knowing what they would return to.

“We had no idea, no information,” Mrs Andersen said.

“The flames were so big and they’ve stopped just before the house.”

The couple were lucky not to lose their home. Picture: Vanessa Marsh

Mrs Andersen said despite the family home being saved, the damage had been extensive.

“We had big beautiful gardens planted all around here and it was so pretty,” she said.

“It’s 15 years of work and it’s all gone.

“The loss is just incredible and physically we’re okay but mentally it’s very hard.”

Mr Andersen said the ferocity if the fire was impossible to contend with.

“It just roared across so fast there was no time to do anything,” he said.

“We’ve lived here 15 years and we’ve never seen anything like this before.

“The heat was just incredible.”

Jenny and Darryl Andersen on their scorched property. Picture: Vanessa Marsh