A Wodonga engineer has warmed the hearts, and hearths, of Upper Murray residents by creating and donating 11 fire pits to keep those affected by the Black Summer bushfires warm this winter.
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Raymond Bertazzo, who own Bertazzo Engineered, said he was inspired to create the fire pits from offcuts after seeing "shipping containers with tiny bathrooms and kicthens" being provided to those who lost their houses.
"I thought 'poor buggars, they must think everyone's forgotten about them, they're all worried about COVID-19'," he said.
"If you remove the curtain of COVID away, behind it there's some people having a really rough time."
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Mr Bertazzo sought to make the fire pits from offcuts but didn't quite have enough so he contacted a friend at Apex Metals in Melbourne, who shared his idea with the chief executive of BlueScope Steel.
Together they sourced enough materials to create 11 of the fire pits.
Mr Bertazzo said another half dozen businesses including Visy, Vitasoy, Signode and Mainfreight all volunteered services in an effort to bring the idea to life and help those affected by the fires.
Towong's Brooke and Leanne McKimmie said one of the fire pits grateful recipients.
The family lost their home in January and are renting in town while Mr McKimmie spends most of his time out on the farm rebuilding fences.
"Something like this is fantastic," he said.
"This will allow me to dry out and stay warm.
"We're very grateful, thank you."