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Fire services said the couple whose caravan caught on fire this morning arrived in town today from Darwin.
“The pulled into the car park and went inside to buy something and when they came out it was on fire,” the spokesman said.
“They managed to unhook the car attached to it but the caravan was burnt to the wheels.
“It is uncertain what caused the fire but it is not being treated as suspicious.”
A Katherine man was able to shoot some phone video of the blaze which destroyed a grey nomads’ home today.
Alan Steele was working at his Smokemart store when he smelled an acrid stench.
“At first we thought it was an electrical fire in the shopping centre somewhere,” he said.
After going outside with others they saw a “huge plume of black smoke” coming from the Katherine Visitor Information Centre area.
Rushing over to see if there was anything he could do to help, along with emergency services, who were on the scene, Mr Steele could only watch helplessly as the caravan burned to its axles.
“It was well alight and there was nothing anyone could really do.
“There was a series of popping sounds insides as various things went off, probably aerosols and stuff like that.
“There were two gas cylinders on the front so we were a bit anxious about that.
“A tyres went off as they caught fire as well.”
Mr Steele said the elderly owners of the caravan appeared to be watching on and were understandably upset.
“That was all their possessions, it will be a long trip home.”