‘What hurts me most is my collections. My mementos from over the years. They’re all gone’

Tony and Digna Antonucci lovingly rebuilt their property after it was razed in a previous fire – now their dream retirement home has again been reduced to rubble.

Charred fruit trees, cast iron cooking pans and a pizza oven are the only things that remain of the Antonuccis’ dream retirement home after a bushfire swept through the Grampians.

Tony and Digna’s property in the bush near Moyston had been lovingly rebuilt by Mr Antonucci after he lost the original log cabin on the College Rd site to another fire 18 years ago.

“The plan was to come here and retire, which I did, and then … I started planting olive trees because, being of Italian background, that’s what we do,” Mr Antonucci said as he stood among the ruins of his house.

“This is the second time we’ve been moved out. I copped it in 2006. Same thing happened.”

Tony and Digna Antonucci with the burned out remains of their house near Moyston. Picture: David Crosling

Following that devastating loss, Mr Antonucci vowed to rebuild, salvaging the original chimney to use on the new self-sufficient home.

“I’d just started to get things together, the trees were fruiting nicely,” he said.

“I’ve just had all the water tanks put in. It was all self-sufficient … this was completely solar … I’d just laid the cable for the power. I had it nicely set up.”

But three days ago the couple was among the thousands of people told to evacuate as bushfires raged across the Grampians.

The Antonuccis’ dream retirement home was destroyed in a bushfire. Picture: supplied

The fires have raged across the Grampians. Picture: David Crosling

They were able to return for the first time on Sunday afternoon to find only a pile of rubble where their dream home once stood.

The house had collapsed completely as the blaze tore through.

“I didn’t think it would be like this,” Mrs Antonucci said as she surveyed the ruins.

“What hurts me most is my collections. My mementos from over the years. They’re all gone. It’s something you cannot replace.”

The Antonuccis’ home before the fire tore through it. Picture: David Crosling

At the Pomonal Estate winery, Pepita Atchison said the venue was full of guests when the call to evacuate came through at 1am on Boxing Day.

Ms Atchison, who runs the winery with husband Adam, told the Herald Sun they had to wake everybody and tell them to pack up and leave.

She said it was unlikely they would be able to produce any wine from this year’s crop, due to falling ash destroying the grapevines.

“In the seven years we’ve been open we’ve had Covid for three years and then we’ve had two fires and two floods.”

But while most of the properties in Halls Gap, Moyston and Pomonal escaped extensive damage, the Antonuccis are feeling their loss deeply and now face the pain of rebuilding – again.

Burnt land the size of Singapore

Firefighters will be battling the catastrophic Grampians ­bushfires for weeks to come, as locals returning to their homes assess the full extent of the damage.

Residents and farmers were counting the cost of the ­destruction on Sunday, with at least one returning to a home gutted by the blaze as more than 1000 sheep were found dead.

Two further homes in ­Moyston, believed to be holiday houses, and 11 sheds located near Moyston and Pomonal have also been destroyed.

The devastating blaze had burnt through 74,000ha – a patch of land the size of Singapore.

The Grampians tourism sector has been served devastating blows for four out of the last five summers, with bushfires and Covid-19 lockdowns ­draining millions of dollars from operators.

A fire tearing through the Pomonal area. Picture: CFA / Facebook.

While Tourism Grampians Wimmera Mallee CEO Marc Sleeman welcomed the government funding, he pointed to modelling that estimated the area lost $202m in revenue during the February fires alone.

“It’s taken 76,000ha of burnt land to get the federal government out here,” he said.

“Without more infrastructure funding, and the quick repairs for our walking trails, this recovery will take much longer.”

Mr Sleeman, who noted the summer period generated 30 per cent of the area’s annual tourism revenue, said he feared holiday-makers with bookings in late January would find a new destination.

On Sunday, the threat level was reduced to a watch and act warning for Halls Gap, ­Pomonal, and the eastern side of the Grampians allowing ­residents to return, however the towns remain closed for tourism. Despite the cool change after a blistering Boxing Day, State Control Centre spokesman Luke Hegarty said fully containing the fire in the national park was expected to take about two weeks.

“We’re not seeing, at this stage, a day where there’s any significant increase in fire ­danger,” he said on Saturday. Several fires in the Grampians National Park remained out of control on Sunday morning.

Halls Gap Zoo owner Mark Treweek was forced to shelter some of the animals at his home as the blaze and smoke consumed the town over the weekend. While the zoo has not been destroyed, a large clean-up will be required.

“Like many other local businesses, we’ve been devastated by the recent bushfires that forced us to close our doors during our busiest season – a critical time for us to generate revenue and ensure the ­wellbeing of our animals,” Mr Treweek wrote on a fundraising site.

More than $85,000 has been donated to the zoo so far.

Victoria’s emergency management commissioner Rick Nugent said the “good news” was that all emergency warnings had now been downgraded to watch and act.

One fire-damaged telecommunications tower had been restored by Sunday morning, but a second used by Optus and the NBN remained offline.

Payments for fire-affected communities

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has announced 13 weeks of income support for workers and sole traders impacted by the Grampians bushfires, as it was revealed more than 1000 sheep had been killed in addition to three homes being lost.

Mr Albanese announced on Sunday the disaster recovery payments will provide up to 13 weeks of income support on top of existing hardship payments and council’s disaster relief measures and would come into effect from 2pm on Monday.

Mr Albanese was joined by Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan for a briefing at the Horsham incident control centre on Sunday.

The Prime Minister thanked the efforts of emergency services, particularly crews that had come from interstate to support efforts to control the ongoing bushfire.

“We live in a country which has harsh conditions. It’s always had fires, it’s always had these extreme weather events. But the truth is they’re becoming more frequent and more intense,” Mr Albanese said.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Premier Jacinta Allan at the Horsham Incident Control Centre. Picture: David Crosling

“This is acutely felt because of the time of year … it’s a joyous time, but unfortunately for many families in this area … it has been a very difficult time.”

Ms Allan said the number of destroyed homes, which is at least three, could go up as crews attempted to assess the extent of the damage.

“Part of the challenge with this Grampians fire is that it’s still burning … so where the crews can, they are in there undertaking rapid impact assessments to get a sense of property loss. So that number may go up,” she said.

The threat has been reduced to a watch and act warning for Halls Gap, Pomonal, and the eastern side of the Grampians allowing residents to return, however the towns remain closed for tourism.

Ms Allan said the current priority was the safety of the firefighters, noting that the fire could pick up in intensity at any point.

The damage is likely to rise as more becomes known. Picture: David Crosling

“We’ve got plenty more hot days ahead of us, so that’s why crews are in there while the weather is a little bit more benign to do everything they can to suppress the most dangerous parts of the fire.”

There has also been significant primary production losses with about 1000 sheep lost in the blaze.

Ms Allan called the destruction of the natural environment and ongoing impacts to the community was heartbreaking, saying it is going to be a long recovery.

“It was only in February this year that pretty much half the houses in Pomonal … were lost to the fires on another very difficult day.”

“This (payment) is going to be particularly important for the agricultural and tourism industries here, which are really the economic foundations of this community.”

Mr Albanese echoed the Premier who blasted people ignoring the total fire ban earlier in the week, calling it disrespectful to the workers and volunteers.

“Don’t be a dickhead. Help your fellow Victorians,” he said.

The fire was still not under control with a Not Safe to Return warning issued for the Long Gully Road to College Road area, east of Mt William about 11.30am on Sunday.