Brian and Amy Dalrymple, both CFA volunteers, got married at Tynong on Saturday.– Bridget Brady
IT WAS a wedding day to remember.
Half the guests left to check if their homes were still standing, a groomsmen left to fight the fires, and the bride and groom said ‘I Do’ in a 47.6-degree venue.
Despite the drama of an extraordinary wedding day, and not knowing if their own house was safe, newlyweds Brian and Amy Dalrymple said they were lucky.
The Longwarry North couple exchanged vows in Tynong at 1pm on Saturday with a smoke-filled sky as their backdrop.
Brian, 23, said he would never forget the day.
“Once Amy walked down the aisle and we sat down together I looked at her and said, ‘I love you’, and the first thing she said was ‘gee these fires are bad’.”
Duty called for groomsman and Warragul CFA captain Paul Tandberg, who left after the service to fight blazes that threatened towns from the Bunyip State Park fires.
Other guests did not attend the reception because they feared for their houses.
Brian and Amy are both volunteers with the Longwarry and District CFA and said a few of their friends from the CFA could not attend the wedding.
“Being in the CFA we totally understood. We were worried about our house as well, and did not know it was OK until Monday,” Brian said.
“It was kind of weird at the wedding. Nothing went to plan … nothing like what we expected. The fires seemed to be more of a talking point than the wedding.”
Amy, 19, said the conditions were not ideal for a bride.
“Just before we (the bridal party) left from my parents’ house where we were getting ready the birds disappeared and it went quiet. It was eerie and a bit scary. We were watching this massive cloud of smoke. It was a glowing orange.
“We were about to turn onto the freeway and police were blocking off the roads and they said if you leave now you can’t go back to your house.
“The whole way there I had never seen my dad so quiet. It was scary.”
One of Amy’s family members left after the service to collect the bride’s beloved dogs and took them to the reception to join celebrations.
Amy said many people expressed their sympathy about getting married on such a day.
“Everyone was saying how sorry they felt for us.
“It was a disaster day but in a way it was a miracle day for us.
“We got married, our place and animals are fine and we are still alive.”
The couple will spend their honeymoon in the relative safety of the Great Ocean Road.
