Leaving early was never an option for Brenda Ireland.
The first she knew her Warrandyte home was facing a fire threat was when her husband woke her from a nap and told her flames were coming towards their house.
Moments later she was in a car fleeing down the driveway as a massive ball of fire rushed across her backyard towards her home.
On Monday, she stood in front of where her home had been, looking at the blackened remains.
Little is recognisable among the broken bricks and twisted corrugated iron.
A table sits on what would have been a patio at the back of the house.
A barbecue also survived the inferno.
Trees stand unburnt at the front of the house and parts of a tomato plant remain.
A small patch of green grass is among the black.
The blaze took her next-door neighbour's house, which smouldered as an excavator knocked down what remained.
But other nearby houses stand unscathed.
While sad, Mrs Ireland is thankful no one was hurt or killed.
"It is a beautiful area and we had a beautiful house, but we've got wonderful neighbours and they all survived, so that is the main thing," she said.
"We can build a new house."
Mrs Ireland, who had lived in the house for 10 years, says she will rebuild.
