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WA bushfires continue as families grieve

Esperance locals are preparing to console the families of three young foreigners who died in fires that continue to ravage Western Australia's south.

A supplied image of bushfire in Myrup in the Shire of Esperance.
Easing conditions have reduced the threat of a series of bushfires in Western Australia. (AAP)

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Source: AAP


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The family of an Englishman who was killed in bushfires in Western Australia's south are trying to raise funds to farewell him in Esperance, "where his heart lies".

Tom Butcher, 31, was killed along with Norwegian Anna Winther, 29, and German Julia Kohrs-Lichte, 19, as they tried to save his girlfriend's horse.

Local farmer Kym "Freddy" Curnow also died in the lightning-sparked blaze as he warned others away from the front near Scaddan, some 50km north of Esperance.

A crowd funding page has been set up by Mr Butcher's older sister Kirsty-Lee Oliver, in order to cover flights to Australia as well as funeral costs.

"My husband Jason, my four-month old daughter Lillian, my mother, and stepson Tylar need to travel to Perth to lay his body to rest over the beach of Esperance, where he loved to ride his horse and where his heart lies," she wrote on the Gofundme page.

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Families of the other foreign victims are expected to arrive in the WA coastal town soon, as the fire-ravaged community makes preparations to comfort them.

Esperance Shire President Victoria Brown says she has already spoken with a relative of one of the victims.

"Our community is waiting to wrap them up in our arms and show them the place where their children last were," Ms Brown told AAP.

They will be presented with condolence books in which locals have written memories and tributes.

Ms Brown said it would give the families a physical piece of Esperance to take home.

Mr Butcher's mother Sharon Boak said she was touched by the messages she had already received and was proud of what her son had achieved in Australia.

"The tributes have just been absolutely amazing, although I'm not surprised because of the man Tom was - they've just made me so proud," Ms Boak told Britain's ITV news.

Last week's fires destroyed two homes and in some cases entire farms but attention has now swung to an area immediately north east of the town.

Fresh lightning strikes in Myrup on Monday afternoon have worried firefighters, who have asked the public to notify authorities if they see any new fires.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull paid tribute to those affected by the fires in parliament.

"The tragedy of people going about their daily lives in a farming community ... only to be confronted by a firestorm drives home to all of us the very grave dangers to life and property as the bushfire season is upon us," Mr Turnbull said.

DFES said firefighters had saved more than 100 homes in the Myrup, Windabout, Bandy Creek and Castletown districts overnight.

One home and two sheds were also destroyed in a fire in Bindoon, north east of Perth on Sunday, where an elderly man was treated for burns to his leg.


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