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Bushfire evacuees in limbo as fire threat remains

The Lismore App

Liina Flynn

14 November 2019, 11:55 PM

Bushfire evacuees in limbo as fire threat remainsGianna Saputo and her daughter Larah are sheltering at Lismore Showgrounds from bushfres near Nimbin.

Gianna Saputo and her daughter Larah still don’t know when they will be able to go home.


They are among the many displaced people as a result of the ongoing bushfires in the Nightcap National Park.


They left their home on Gungas Road, in the Tuntable Falls area of Nimbin on Monday, looking for shelter at Lismore Showgrounds and are still camping there.


For contacts and information and about bushfires, the Lismore App has a bushfires button on the main page: Bush Fires


Gianna Saputo and her daughter Larah with the donated camper trailer.



Gianna told the Lismore App they attended the community meeting at Nimbin Town Hall on Sunday, where “we were warned and told to get out”.


“We went back home but the smoke in the air was too much for us and the car was full of ash - so we decided to get out on Monday night.” she said.


“Gungas Road only has one way in and out and now we have peace of mind.


 “We had a small tent we were camping in for the first two nights, then someone brought a fully set up camper trailer to the showground and we were lucky enough to be allowed to sleep in it.


"It’s great, we can sleep on a comfortable bed now and it’s cool in the daytime. 


“We want to thank David and Karl for donating it.”


Gianna said they still didn’t know what they would do in the near future, and they might be camping out for a while.


“We’re not going home until the fire is extinguished,” she said.


“We were monitoring the fire’s progress and saw it was slowly moving toward our house.


“It’s scary - we heard that one man went back home and saw smoke and fire bombs near him. 


“When embers started hitting his roof, he grabbed his stuff and left.”


Gianna said they felt there were some confused messages about whether it was safe or not to return home.


“The wind keeps changing direction and the fire situation in unpredictable,” she said. 


“It’s confusing about whether it will be safe or not.


 “I hope it rains. The bushland around has been dry for so long.”


Gianna and Larah moved to Gungas Road 18 months ago, and at this stage, they are not even sure if they want to live there anymore.

The Lismore App
The Lismore App
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