A young Australian Army private whose family were trapped in their beloved town of Mallacoota as it was ravaged by fires has been reunited with her parents.
In a tear-jerking moment, Private Brodie Scott is seen returning to the besieged Victorian town to help with the fire relief effort.
As haunting pictures of Mallacoota drew horror around the world on New Year’s Eve, the brave reservist was forced to watch helplessly from afar as the sky turned an eerie orange over her childhood home.
She feared for her parents, Marty and Kathy Scott, after they decided to stay behind to help the fire-ravaged community.
Private Brodie Scott hugs her mother Kathy (pictured) as the family enjoyed an emotional reunion near their hometown of Mallacoota
Private Scott (pictured) explained she was ‘devastated’ by what the fires had done to her childhood home
Private Scott, a driver specialist in the Australian Army Reserves, who grew up in Mallacoota, broke down in tears as she feared it would now be unrecognisable.
‘To know mum and dad were there was pretty terrifying. Our house is situated pretty much right in the town centre. They stayed until they couldn’t stay any longer.
‘I think it’s going to be pretty devastating, I don’t think I’ll recognise a lot of the town.’
Mallacoota, a small town in the East Gippsland region of Victoria, drew headlines across the globe after it was the focal point of Australia’s biggest peacetime rescue mission, with more than 1,100 saved by two navy ships after seeking shelter on its beach for four days.
Private Scott arrived back in Mallacoota (pictured) as part of Operation Bushfire Assist, which has seen tens of thousands come to the aid of fire-ravaged towns
The young private hugs her father Marty (pictured) as they are finally reunited following the bushfires
The Scott family embrace one another in emotional scenes as their daughter arrived back home to help with the relief effort
But in a stunning twist of fate, Private Scott, who is part of the 4th Combat Service Support Battalion, was soon deployed to the town as part of Operation Bushfire Assist.
It gave her the opportunity to reunite with her parents in emotional footage, where she is seen crying and hugging them.
‘Seeing mum and dad for the first time was again so many emotions, so happy to see them,’ she said.
There were tears of joy as the Scott family (pictured) embraced one another soon as their daughter arrived home
Marty and Kathy Scott (pictured) said they feared they would lose their home to the devastating Victorian fires
‘It’s a shame it’s not under better circumstances, but as soon as I saw them it bought a tear to my eye, and they said the same thing.
‘While I’m here in Mallacoota I’ll be helping with the fuel deliveries around town along with the other emergency services like CFA and the SES.
‘The town is in good spirits, and it’s a really tight community so i’m sure we’ll get through this.
‘It’s a small coastal town, population is about 1,000 people. Considering it’s such a small town, I got so many opportunities through school, and just the community, which was really good.’
In a photo that came to define the bushfire crisis, Allison Marion took a picture of her son Finn, 11, as they fled Mallacoota by boat on New Year’s Eve (pictured)
Families in Mallacoota (pictured on January 4) were forced to flee their homes and were meet with hellish red skies
Her mum Kathy explained they feared they would lose their house, and that it was made all the more difficult as the family were separated from their daughter.
‘We thought we were going to lose our place, we were fortunate we didn’t but so many people have,’ Ms Scott said.
‘It’s pretty devastating. It’s been hard not having our girls here, and I know it’s been hard for them not being here.
The town of Mallacoota was badly hit by the bushfires over new year (pictured) and now faces a long path to rebuild
The town suffered days of raging bushfires which destroyed the community (pictured) over the new year
‘When we got a call that she was coming back to town, it was pretty exciting for us.
‘It’s been amazing the number of emergency services and volunteers that have come, not just the ones that are here but the ones who have come in since just to help out.
‘It’s a pretty big thing.’
The bushfire crisis is a huge effort for the Australian Defence Force, with several thousand full-time and reserve personnel providing direct support in the field, at sea, in the air and from defence bases across fire-affected regions.
About 20,00 reservists have been deployed in support of Operation Bushfire Assist, with the number still growing daily.
Up to 3,000 reserve personnel will likely be called up over the course of the crisis, to be deployed in NSW, the ACT, South Australia, Tasmania and Victoria.
More than 1,000 people were later evacuated from Mallacoota by the Australian navy. They have now returned to Melbourne (pictured)