A woman is lucky to be alive after her car flipped as she tried to escape the raging Adelaide Hills bushfire with her dog, Jack.
Dan-yella McDermott found herself surrounded by a wall of fire as she tried to escape the Cudlee Creek blaze, which was nearing her home in Harrogate, South Australia.
‘Everywhere else was black and burning,’ she told 7NEWS.
Dan-yella McDermott was left to pack up valuables and escape the ferocious Cudlee Creek blaze that was making its way to the home she shares with partner Jim Bonass
The car she was driving in then flipped on its side, trapping her and Jack as the flames got closer.
She reached for her phone and made a frantic call to her partner Jim Bonass, hoping he would be able to rescue her – but then the line cut out.
‘All I hear was ”I’m trapped in the car and it’s burning”,’ Mr Bonass said.
Ms McDermott broke a window and squeezed herself and Jack out before finding shelter in a paddock.
When Mr Bonass arrived on the scene, all he saw was the car on fire and thought his partner had died.
‘The car was ablaze and that’s when I thought I’d lost her,’ he said.
‘That’s when I thought she’d died.’
The couple eventually reunited safely, but returned home to find their property badly damaged.
Dan-Yella McDermott managed to break a window with enough room for herself and Jack to get out and seek shelter in a burnt-out paddock
The Cuddle Creek fire at Woodside, in the Adelaide Hills in Adelaide, Friday, December 20
Shayne Boyle also suffered burns to 50 per cent of his body as he tried to escape the Adelaide Hills fires.
The 37-year-old was on his father-in-law Kym Green’s apple and cherry orchard when the Cudlee Creek fire approached last Friday.
The pair fled and then jumped into separate tractors to save a neighbour’s house from the flames.
Mr Boyle was driving in front of Mr Green, who soon lost sight of him because of the thick smoke.
‘There was so much wind and so much heat and so much fire just exploding everywhere and I lost sight of Shayne so we just went about our business of putting out fires,’ Mr Green told The Advertiser.
At the same time, a crew of six firefighters were called to protect a home, east of Mr Green’s orchard.
Shayne Boyle also suffered burns to 50 per cent of his body as he tried to escape the Adelaide Hills fires
Mr Boyle suffered severe burns to his arms, legs and face and has received multiple skin grafts, but is expected to recover
Andrew Noble was driving the truck when he spotted Mr Boyle emerging from the smoke suffering from burns.
‘I avoided him and pulled up and he yelled in the window, ”I’m burnt, I’m really burnt I got to get out of here”,’ Mr Noble said.
‘So we just opened the door and hauled him in. And at this point it was touch and go, the fire was on top of us.’
The crew pulled him into the truck and doused with him water from their bottles before taking him to a police officer who then took him to an ambulance.
Mr Boyle suffered severe burns to his arms, legs and face and has received multiple skin grafts, but is expected to recover.
Two bushfires are burning out of control around the Adelaide Hills, prompting emergency warnings from the Country Fire Service (pictured on December 20)
The Kings Highway (pictured) is not due to open for another month due to the Currowan Bushfire
Residents across Australia are being warned to remain vigilant and escape fires as soon as they can.
Member for Bega Andrew Constance said the Kings Highway in New South Wales is not due to open for another month due to the Currowan Bushfire which has already burnt through more than 206,000 hectares.
‘Unfortunately it’s in a disastrous state and it’ll be at least a month before we see it re-opened,’ Mr Constance said in a statement.
‘The fire still threatens the road and coupled with the threat of falling trees, it’s too dangerous for work crews and emergency services to begin work to clear the trees and properly assess the damage.’