A MAN who survived a petrol bombing has spoken of the moment he awoke to his lounge room erupting into flames.
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Jarrod* and his partner were asleep on a mattress in their Eaglehawk home when the fire erupted.
He hopes that sharing the experience might help keep the incident in the public eye and bring the perpetrators to justice.
"We have literally lost everything," Jarrod said.
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Detectives said Jarrod, his partner and a friend who was asleep in another room were lucky not to have been seriously hurt or killed.
They used a press conference last Friday to ask the public for information about who might have thrown the petrol bombs into the home.
On Sunday, Jarrod told The Bendigo Advertiser he and his partner were still reeling from the incident.
His partner had woken up three nights in a row thinking she could smell smoke, just as she did at 3.30am Thursday morning when the fire began.
"She's frightened for her life," Jarrod said.
"I am too."
Jarrod said the petrol bombs landed metres from he and his partner's heads.
"I don't know, I was trying to put the fire out and all that, but it wasn't working," he said.
"There were these couches near the window. We are lucky they were there.
"If they hadn't of been, then something different could possibly have happened."
The fire destroyed the house and most of the couple's possessions within 20 minutes, Jarrod said.
He thanked emergency services for their help, including the police who have been investigating the incident.
"They've been great," Jarrod said.
He and his partner are currently being put up in hotels by the council, police and the Department of Health and Human Services.
"They have been really nice. Everyone has been really nice," he said.
Jarrod and his partner are unsure what they will do now.
They are considering leaving Bendigo to stay with family members.
Last Friday, Detective Leading Senior Constable Heazelwood urged witnesses not to hold back.
"It might be the vital piece of information we need to prevent them from happening to anyone else."
Police had not established a motive for the crime on Friday and had not provided any updates by print deadline on Sunday.
Detectives had previously urged anyone with information to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
* Name changed to protect Jarrod's identity
Tom O'Callaghan
I grew up in Bendigo and I want to tell your stories.
I grew up in Bendigo and I want to tell your stories.
