NSW Bushfires: Kindness for Kurrajong Heights alpaca farmstay
After a farmstay property on the foothills of the Blue Mountains was damaged by bushfires the owners called on the Facebook community to drop off their Christmas trees.
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A river of kindness is flowing straight to fire-ravaged Kurrajong Heights village today, where carloads of people can be seen arriving at Madison’s Mountain Retreat with a very different type of present in tow.
After the farmstay property was damaged by bushfires the Redelman family called on the Facebook community to drop off their Christmas trees so they can feed them to their 72 alpacas.
Paul Jurcevic was tagged in a Facebook post by his sister and although he lives 75 minutes away in Padstow he did not hesitate to jump in his car with sons Roko, 6, and Tomi, 4, bringing with him not only their family Christmas tree but a client’s tree as well.
“It was either go to the beach or come here and help out a little bit,” Mr Jurcevic said.
Others have donated manure, compost, bales of hay — even an asparagus fern.
Farmstay owners Debbie Redelman and husband Geoff have been overwhelmed by people’s generosity.
“Christmas trees are like chocolate to them,” Mrs Redelman said with reference to the alpacas who happily sheltered under trees in the paddock chewing the gifted treats.
It was a different story on December 21 when fire ripped through the 85-acreage farmstay and alpaca stud farm, which borders the Wollemi and Blue Mountains national parks, damaging the two refurbished train carriages and a brick common room.
There are also eight self-contained one-bedroom cedar cottages on the property but they were spared.
“The fire came across the whole property at once — between the warning to evacuate and that it was too late to leave there was 11 minutes,” Mrs Redelman said.
“It jumped to the camellia bush next to the common room and went up into the eaves and burnt the rafters.”
She said they never foresaw that happening.
“The plan was if it came to it to go into the swimming pool. We had oxygen masks. This (common room) was the alternative because it’s made of brick,” Mrs Redelman said.
She said the girl alpacas stayed near the dam while “the boys” were on the tennis court which they wetted down before fire swept through the property. The chooks stayed in their pen.
Thankfully everyone survived and is fit and healthy, including the goats, peacocks and baby Raleigh who was born yesterday weighing in at 7.5 kilograms.
But there is physical damage to the buildings including to the electricity, the plumbing is broken, and air-conditioning units, cameras and irrigation hoses were destroyed.
“We are filling bathtubs with water; the (13) boys are going through a bathtub a day,” Mrs Redelman said.
She said the damage from the fires could run as high as $300,000 and her landscaping insurance will not cover the cost of plants. Which is why she is welcoming plant donations from people like Rachel Gillette, of Bligh Park, who dropped off an asparagus fern today.
Asked if she feared Saturday’s predicted dangerous fire conditions, Mrs Redelman said “not really” because there was nothing left to burn. Tomorrow’s temperature in Kurrajong Heights is forecast to tip 42 degrees with west to north-westerly winds.
Please call Madison’s Mountain Retreat before you visit on (02) 4567 7398.