December 23, 2022
12567682-AV51-22
Merry Christmas
(Ivan Kemp) 312984_10
As excited kids across Greater Geelong eagerly count down the days until Santa visits, Elise and Lucy King and mum Emma (pictured) met the jolly red fellow at Geelong’s waterfront this week. The event was part of a festive morning tea with Santa at the carousel pavilion, where kids got to ride on their favourite carousel horse and take a special photo with Santa. Turn to page 22 for more Ivan Kemp pictures from the morning tea. As we near the end of 2022, the Geelong Independent team would like to wish you a Merry Christmas and safe and happy New Year. We will return for 2023 on January 13.
Family’s fire anguish By Matt Hewson The Lara community has rallied to raise more than $22,000 to support the family of an 11-year-old boy killed in a house fire on Monday, in which a 74-year-old man also died. Peter Cochran, 74, and Elihjohn O’Donnell, 11, died in what police described as one of the most “intense” fires in the region in recent times. Emergency services were called to the Forrest Road North blaze about 4.50am on Monday. Elihjohn’s 10-year-old brother, Braxton, was also in the house at the time of the fire, but was “extremely lucky” to have escaped the blaze that killed his brother and their family
‘‘
Elihjohn will always be in our hearts and will forever be a Lara Cat
’’
- Lara Cricket Club
friend, Detective Senior Sergeant Mark Guthrie said. “The mother is devastated; we probably can’t really describe how she’s feeling. She’s caring for her son at this stage, who’s also traumatised,” he said. A GoFundMe page, ‘Helping Kristie and her family’ was set up on Tuesday to help with funeral expenses and bills. More than $22,000 had been donated when
the Independent went to print. Mr Cochran, who lived in Lara since the 1980s, was a friend of the boys’ family and authorities have indicated he may have died attempting to save the two boys. Lara Cricket Club, where Elihjohn played, sent its condolences, love and support to the boy’s mother, Kristie, and her family. “Today we lost a teammate, friend and future star of the club and we’re all deeply saddened,” the club said in a statement. “Elihjohn will always be in our hearts and will forever be a Lara Cat.” Detective Senior Sergeant Guthrie said the incident would be tough on the entire Lara community, including the local emergency service personnel who attended the scene.
“We’re all human, we’ve all got family, so it affects us in a way as well,” he said. “It’s bad for everyone, especially in a small community like Lara. But hopefully the community of Lara rallies behind [those affected] and gives them some assistance and some comfort in this time.” He said at this stage, the fire was not being treated as suspicious, although the exact cause was still unknown. “It was certainly not an electrical fault; we’re not too sure at this stage,” he said. “It’s a tragic accident that’s occurred, and we’re now in the process of preparing a report for the coroner.” Details: https://www.gofundme.com/f/ helping-kristie-and-her-family
Clubhouse Now Open AC K B E SE FOR E G PA E MOR LS AI DET 12550399-KJ51-22