By Tanya Steele
Yarra Glen CFA attended the scene of a distressed family who had their campervan catch alight as they passed through the Eltham and Yarra Glen road on Friday 14 April at 11.30 am.
The Wesburn family with a young mother, two children and their dog were on their way to Ballarat when the van caught fire.
They noticed smoke coming from the campervan and pulled over, a quick-acting passerby helped extinguish the flames
The male driver was back on their way so quickly that Bill Boyd of Yarra Glen CFA didn’t get to properly thank him.
“He must have had a fire extinguisher with him, but he knocked it on the head,” said Mr Boyd.
CFA then got access to the van and completely investigated to make sure the fire was out.
They helped the family get sorted while tow trucks cleared the van way.
“The kids were a little shaken up, so we helped get them settled and I think they’re going to have a little camping adventure in their backyard now,” said Mr Boyd.
The van had low-level fire damage throughout and Mr Boyd encouraged people to get regular maintenance done before long journeys.
“They were really, really lucky it happened where it did and that we were able to get there quickly,” he said.
He also wished to extend thanks to Coldstream CFA for their assistance on the day.
