'It Came from Everywhere': New South Wales Community Counts the Cost Following Bushfire Sweeps Through.

As Garry Morgan returned to his property on Friday afternoon, his rural mid-north coast property was surrounded by a “big plume of smoke”. Less than twenty-four hours later, a pair of homes on his street were consumed, and the adjacent bushland would be reduced to blackened skeletal remains.

A Community at the Centre of Tragedy

The township of Bulahdelah, approximately 235km north of Sydney, has become at the centre of a tragedy after a experienced firefighter died on Sunday evening when he was struck by a collapsing tree. This marks a ominous beginning to the wildfire period.

Four properties have been destroyed in the wider Bulahdelah area, including two on Emu Creek Road, the residence of Garry Morgan, one on the Pacific Highway and one south of the township.

“It's beyond description,” he said. “The dogs didn’t leave my side, it was frightening.”

Landscapes of Loss and Fortitude

Bulahdelah is a frequent rest stop on the Pacific Highway for travelers on their way up the coastal region to beach areas such as Seal Rocks, Forster and Port Macquarie.

On Monday afternoon, the highway south of town was shrouded in thick, orange smoke. Helicopters circled above, aiding firefighters on the ground who were battling a blaze that had scorched 4,000 hectares since Friday.

Heavy vehicles slowed to observe traffic cones and reduce-speed signs, the charred eucalypts and ash-covered ground on each side of the highway evidence of how far the fire had swept through the adjacent Myall Lakes national park. It remained at a watch and act level on Monday evening.

A Hub of Emergency Response

In Bulahdelah, though, it would seem like another ordinary day if not for the aircraft overhead and scent of burning hanging in the atmosphere.

A refuelling station for aircraft has been established at the town’s showground, turning it into a base for around 300 emergency personnel who have come from across the state to help.

On Monday afternoon, supplies of water were being unloaded from trucks and lollies were being packaged into zip lock bags. One firefighter noted that they needed a water bottle every 20 minutes when on the fire line.

First-Hand Stories from the Blaze

Clouds of smoke were still rising from smoldering patches on Emu Creek Road, a meandering country road that follows a creek bed south of the township where two houses were lost.

On a boundary post outside a burnt property, a charred teddy bear remained attached to the log, complete with a Christmas hat.

Down the road, Morgan sat on his porch with his two dogs, a little patch of grass surrounding his house the sole remnant of how the landscape used to look. Against the odds, his property was saved, despite his neighbor's home burning to the ground.

He recalled receiving a call from a friend at lunchtime on Saturday, warning him “you have roughly 30 minutes and then a fire’s going to hit”. His estimate was spot on.

“We doused the buildings and shed down, wet the perimeter,” he said, and then his reaction turned to “alarm”. “I said to myself, ‘this is overwhelming’,” he said. “But I wasn’t leaving.”

Fortunately, firefighters surrounded the house, and succeeded in defending it. The bushfire moved through in about half an hour, sounding like “a roaring inferno”.

An Environment Altered

Morgan, who has lived in the same house for around 30 years, has never seen the land this parched.

“It once rained rain every week,” he said. “Fires of this magnitude are unprecedented. But you must accept the challenges with the rewards.”

On the same street, Jeff Curley was looking after his friend’s property which had also mostly been spared Saturday’s blaze, other than a damaged light on a car and a container of wood stored for winter that had burnt to ash.

“I am very familiar with this area,” he said. “A few years ago a fire almost approached a nearby ridge and that was pretty scary then, but the wind changed.

“It’s just so much drier this time. Flames emerged on all sides, and the firies essentially protected it [the property].”

This experience wasn’t new for Curley, who came close to losing his home in Wattle Grove when fires swept through in 2019.

“You see people on the news say, ‘The speed was unbelievable’,” he said. “It seems distant, and suddenly it's upon you. I understand the feeling. I told my friend to just get out, and he did.”

Fire Service Update and Continuing Danger

Kirsty Channon, public information officer for the NSW Rural Fire Service, said crews from various services had come from “right up and down the coast” to help with the containment effort and had done an “outstanding job” saving properties from being destroyed.

She said all agencies had “pulled together” after the death of one of their own.

“The firefighting community is one big family,” she said. “The threat persists.

“There have been instances of the Pacific Highway closing and reopening a few times, the fire spot across the road. It’s still not contained, it is expected to spread.”

Channon said efforts in the coming hours would center on the tiny township of Nerong, which was expected to be hit by the Pacific Highway blaze on Monday evening. Authorities advised locals to leave if not prepared, and have a fire plan.

“Small blazes are igniting from lightning strikes a few days ago,” she said.

“Tomorrow’s weather is mid 30s with variable wind, and that has been difficult - wind swirls in the area.”