‘I would have lost it all’: Team effort saves homes from bushfire in Darwin rural area

COMMUNITY spirit and the dedication of firefighters saved several Humpty Doo properties last week as a fire near Risk Road tore through firebreaks and overgrown foliage.

COMMUNITY spirit and the dedication of firefighters saved several Humpty Doo properties last week as a fire near Risk Road tore through firebreaks and overgrown foliage.

Local Karlie Moyle has been living in the area for about two years and said without her neighbours’ help her property would have been in trouble.

But with sprinklers keeping the fire away from the property, the blaze made its way through the front of her property without causing too much damage.

“We’re lucky it just started going that way, it missed the house because of the sprinklers,” she said.

“But we had a couple of spot fires we got with the extinguishers.

“I was nervous, I’m a city kid originally and my husband’s stuck down in Melbourne.”

Karlie Moyle had her home threatened by a fire and is now cleaning up dead trees in her backyard. Pictures: Che Chorley

Ms Moyle already has next fire season on her mind, with her cousin’s excavator on site getting rid of a tree and removing hazardous debris.

“(The tree) is gonna come down soon so it’s best to take it down now,” she said.

“There’s heaps of piles of palm fronds which didn’t go up because of the sprinklers luckily … we’re digging a big hole and putting all the fronds in there so it’s safer.”

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But she wants to know more about how exactly to protect her property.

“I think it would be good if we had an education night, if a politician could put something on with the fireys and the community could go down there,” Ms Moyle said.

“I felt like I was running around like a headless chook. I know there’s other people that would feel like that too.

“Having fire extinguishers handy, firebreaks, moving your lawnmower into the shed, fuel locked in the garage, just the simple stuff.”

Terry Carew had flames at his back fence. Picture: Che Chorley

Her neighbour Terry Carew said without support from the air, he may well have lost everything.

“They bombed all through my home, I would have lost it all I reckon,” he said.

“They even bombed me. It’s just like a big thunderstorm coming down.”

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He had been tending to his property with a hose to ensure his firebreaks were sufficient and there was enough moisture to protect his home before help came.

“They were brilliant, there was two red cruisers in communication with the plane. A lot of damage would have happened if it wasn’t for that plane,” he said.

“I shudder to think what my water bill will be.”