Australia is burning: people killed, animals dead and houses destroyed. For one man left without a home, a glimmer of light has emerged: he’s won $1 million in the lottery.
Since September last year, bushfires have been turning Down Under to ash. In New South Wales (NSW), an area particularly afflicted by infernos, 1,588 homes have been destroyed and a further 653 damaged.
One man from Mount Cotton is among the many to lose his home to a blaze, with his family home in northern NSW being wrecked last year. Thankfully, he now has the means to rebuild.
Eden Hills Country Fire Service/FacebookAs flames and smoke fill the skies, it’s a real blessing to see someone who actually needs to money being dealt a little bit of luck. The unnamed man was the only Division One winner in the Gold Lotto draw, taking home the whole $1 million prize.
After being informed of the win, the man told 9 News:
This is amazing. My family just lost their home in the bushfires in northern NSW and it wasn’t insured. This is a miracle, this really has come at the most incredible time. All that was left of the home was a few charred teacups.
It was his wife’s ‘special numbers’ that filled the winning ticket: 9, 42, 24, 13, 22 and 11 with additional numbers of 26 and 1.
PixabaySo far, the bushfires have taken the lives of at least 25 people, as well as killing more than a billion animals across the country.
NSW’s Rural Fire Service – built almost entirely of volunteers – are being put through their paces by the fires, which are burning at an uncontrollable pace throughout the region (the amount of area burned is now 20 times larger than an average year).
Temperatures are expected to soar again by the end of this week, rising into the 30s with gusty wind conditions endangering Australia once again.
PA ImagesFolks across the world are doing whatever they can to help, whether it be Canadian fire crews flying into the country, models raising money via nudes or the Irwin family’s veterinary care in these trying times.
A number of celebrities have also donated large amounts of money to the crisis, including Metallica, Elton John, Chris Hemsworth, Kylie Jenner and P!nk, while Ellen DeGeneres launched a GoFundMe to raise donations.
You can donate to the Australian Red Cross here. Alternatively, you can donate to the New South Wales Rural Fire Service here, or the Queensland Fire Service here.
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After graduating from Glasgow Caledonian University with an NCTJ and BCTJ-accredited Multimedia Journalism degree, Cameron ventured into the world of print journalism at The National, while also working as a freelance film journalist on the side, becoming an accredited Rotten Tomatoes critic in the process. He’s now left his Scottish homelands and took up residence at UNILAD as a journalist.