Few people know the realities of living in a bushfire prone area more than Jim and Ros McKinnon.
The couple lost their home on Buena Vista Road in Winmalee when catastrophic bushfires swept through the region in 2013.
Since then, the couple has rebuilt their house with state of the art, fire resistant technology.
A specially designed roof, fire shutters and water tanks make them as prepared as they can be in the face of another fire.
Managing the risks of living in a bushfire prone area is the subject of a new documentary which will screen at the Blue Mountains Theatre and Community Hub in Springwood on August 25.
The film has been produced by the Rural Fire Service, National Parks and Wildlife Service and Blue Mountains World Heritage Institute and will be free for local residents to view.
Along with Jim and Ros McKinnon, the film charts the journeys of several survivors of the 2013 Linksview fire and the recovery of the community afterwards.
One of the key themes explored in the film is resilience, both of the community’s ability to recover and of the bush itself.
As Mrs McKinnon said: “I don’t fear the bush... I love the bush. I love the environment that we live in.”
And on why she and her husband chose not to leave Winmalee after the devastation of the fires, she says quite simply: “No where else was ever going to be home”.
