Not only did they have to deal with the loss of their long-time companion, they were unable to bury him since the police had cordoned off the scene pending further investigation. "He is just lying there with the flies buzzing around him, and the police won’t let me go in to fetch his remains," said a tearful Badenhorst.
On hearing of Badenhorst’s distress, Neels Barnard, George Fire Brigade’s division officer, made contact with the couple to arrange for Bank’s body to be removed from the ruins. "I believe that the SPCA accompanied the police to retrieve the body of the dog," he explained. (The SPCA was unavailable for comment at time of going to press.)
The couple told how a police officer had noted smoke billowing above the caravan park at 10:30 on Monday morning and on further investigation saw that their recently built home was engulfed in flames. The officer immediately called the Fire Brigade, but by the time they arrived it was too late to save Banks or their home.
"When we arrived on the scene the house was already gutted, and the animal was dead," said Barnard. Three cats belonging to Murphy have been missing since the fire. "Please could people keep an eye out for them and phone me if they find them? I’m almost sure that they are going to try to go back to our old house in Swallow Drive in Sedgefield," she said.
"We had moved my parents down from Durban to offer them a better life, and now they too have lost all their belongings and have no place to stay," explained a visibly distressed Murphy. Badenhorst’s parents, who live in Knysna, have taken in the now homeless couple as well as Murphy’s displaced parents. "My father is a diabetic and has lost his HB meter and all his medicines in the fire, which, as you can imagine, could be life threatening," said Murphy.
The couple was full of praise for the residents of Sedgefield who had rallied around to offer support and provide essentials to the victims of this tragedy. "My father is a car guard at the Spar in Sedgefield and people just came up to him and gave him money. We now have enough money to pay for the deposit as well as the first month’s rent on a flat for them in Knysna," she said.
Badenhorst told that the couple had been given a full dinner service and several other essentials by caring residents.
The cause of the fire is unknown at present. Comment from the SAPS had not been received at time of going to press.
Should anybody be able to help in finding the missing cats, they are asked to call Vannessa Murphy at 079 711 7322 or Tanja Badenhorst at 073 555 5791.
Above: Tanja Badenhorst with her beloved companion, Banks, who met a gruesome death when their home in Langvlei Dunes burnt to the ground.
This cat, Mommy, and another called LG, went missing after the fire. The cats look alike, and Tanya requests the public to keep a look-out for them.
