RV FEATURE
JAN AND DAVID WIGGINS
In January 2020 , our friends Jan and David were holidaying in Western Australia in their motorhome when they became stranded in Salmon Gums , between Norseman and Esperance thanks to the fires that were raging through the WA goldfields . While they were there waiting for the road to reopen , news came through to them that their family home in Victoria ’ s Mallacoota had been destroyed by the savage bushfires that devastated the town on New Year ’ s Eve .
When they were finally able to get home , they found they had lost everything in the fire .
It ’ s one thing to have to deal with the devastation and heartache of knowing you ’ ve probably lost every possession in your home but being stuck thousands of kilometres away , unable to get back to start to recover their lives was nothing short of frustrating .
Jan and David ’ s motorhome became their house for 18 months while they waited for their new home to be built .
Jan and David standing in front of what remained of their home in Mallacoota .
OUR OWN DISASTER
My wife Kylie and I were six months into our life on the road when tragedy struck us . One of our beloved dogs , Kassidy , had bitten on a cane toad while we were camped at Bitter Springs in the Northern Territory . We tried all the recommended first aid but it was clear she had received a strong dose of the poison and she started to convulse .
We drove into Katherine and managed to get Kassidy into the local veterinary clinic where the young vet worked desperately to save her . But after five hours , it was clear Kassidy ’ s condition was worsening , with little hope of recovery . We made the difficult decision to send her across the rainbow bridge . It broke our hearts and it took us a very long time before we started to enjoy ourselves again .
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