This was published 3 months ago
As houses burned around it, the one that Steve built stood firm
A month ago, Steve Foskett handed his neighbours the keys to their new home.
A builder and resident of the Central Coast’s Koolewong, Foskett built a number of homes on the suburb’s Nimbin Road, which was ravaged by an out-of-control bushfire on Saturday night.
At least 12 homes, some of which Foskett built, were destroyed by the fire, which was still burning on Sunday.
While homes in the block around it were destroyed, Foskett’s latest project survived the inferno that tore through the suburb thanks, he said, to Bushfire standard 29.
Part of the state’s strict building requirements that govern residential homes, Bushfire standard 29 governs homes in areas prone to fire. It requires homes to have walls made of non-combustible materials like concrete or bricks; ember shields on roofs; toughened glass in windows; and metal mesh screens.
“I was pretty pleased,” said Foskett, speaking to the Herald on the fireground on Sunday morning.
“I built that house four weeks ago to the new fire standards and it was the only one that survived.”
Foskett said his neighbours were “pretty happy” when he called to say their home had survived.
As the fire raged towards his street, Foskett stayed behind with his nephews to defend his home. It stood.
“Hell yeah,” he said when asked if he was pleased he stayed.
“My house would’ve gone for sure, nothing has been burnt here for 90 years.”
His 90-year-old neighbour, who has lived in the area for 70 years, said Koolewong had never had a bushfire before.
Foskett also saved the neighbour’s home.
“We created a fire break for three houses. We scraped all the leaf litter away. Because fire runs slowly down a hill, [the firebreak] stopped it,” he said.
Most of his neighbours fled the fire, said Foskett. Premier Chris Minns told reporters on Sunday that 25 adults and two children were in emergency accommodation across the Central Coast. Many others were with family or friends.
“I’m the only one here. It’s like a ghost town,” Foskett said.
Sally Rawsthorne is The Sydney Morning Herald’s higher education reporter.Connect via X or email.