Publication Date January 2, 2016 | ABC News

The Sampson Flat bushfires: A community rising from the ashes

Australia
An orange smoke cloud fills Paula Tose's loungeroom window as the Sampson Flat bushfire roars up the valley and towards her home. Photo: Paula Tose
An orange smoke cloud fills Paula Tose's loungeroom window as the Sampson Flat bushfire roars up the valley and towards her home. Photo: Paula Tose

On January 2, 2015, during a scorching 44-degree summer afternoon, a fire ignited in the Sampson Flat area north-east of Adelaide. Over the next six days the fire destroyed more than 12,500 hectares of land, with 24 homes, multiple sheds and an estimated 900 animals lost.

One year on, many in the affected communities are still putting the pieces of their lives back together