A Parkerville resident’s nightmare of losing his home in the recent devastating fires has been compounded after being denied access to cash during his desperate time of need.
Mark Norton said he was told he could not get cash out from the ANZ branch in Midland the day after losing his debit card — along with all his possessions — in the Parkerville bushfire.
“They said they’ve balanced the till, we can’t help you,” Mr Norton told media. “I said, ‘Really, this is not normal circumstances, my house has burnt down. I have nothing’.”
The 65-year-old said staff told him they were closing early for the Christmas break and would not reopen until December 27.
“It’s a kick in the teeth,” he said. “It was like not dealing with humans because humans would have some compassion.”
ANZ quickly admitted its mistake in a statement.
“We apologise to Mr Norton and have reached out to him directly to ensure we can get him access to funds as soon as possible,” an ANZ spokesperson said.
Three homes were destroyed in the inferno, one of which was Mr Norton’s Robinson Road property, where he had lived for 18 years.
The blaze started near the intersection of Granite Road in Parkerville on Thursday morning after a tree fell across power lines, sparking flames that rapidly spread, giving residents little time to escape.
Mr Norton is now living in his caravan after losing everything but the clothes he was wearing.
Visiting the remains of his property on Friday, he said he had lost “everything”.
“It’s hard … it’s hard for the kids, seeing everything that they have lost,” he said.
“We lost nine guinea pigs and the cats have not come back.
“Just looking inside there’s no floors, everything has dropped through, there’s nothing recognisable, it doesn’t look like my own house, it’s foreign, it’s strange looking at it.
“It’s awful. I’ve lived here for 18 years, this is my home and I love it here.”
Mr Norton plans to rebuild and continue living in the semi-rural area he adores.