'It Came from Everywhere': NSW Community Counts the Cost After Bushfire Sweeps Through.

When Garry Morgan returned to his property on Friday afternoon, his home on the coastal fringe was enveloped in a “big plume of smoke”. Less than twenty-four hours later, two dwellings on his street were destroyed, and the nearby woodland was transformed into charred remnants.

A Community at the Centre of Tragedy

The community of Bulahdelah, approximately 235km north of Sydney, has found itself at the heart of a devastating event after a long-serving firefighter died on Sunday evening when he was struck by a collapsing tree. This signals a ominous beginning to the wildfire period.

Four structures have been destroyed in the broader Bulahdelah area, comprising 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. “My canine companions remained close, it was frightening.”

Scenes of Destruction and Resilience

Bulahdelah is a popular stopover on the Pacific Highway for travelers journeying up the mid-north coast to coastal destinations such as Seal Rocks, Forster and Port Macquarie.

On Monday afternoon, the highway south of town was covered by dense, ochre-hazed smoke. Helicopters hovered overhead, assisting ground crews who were battling a blaze that had consumed 4,000 hectares since Friday.

Passing trucks slowed to observe road markers and warning signs, the scorched trees and burnt grass on each side of the highway evidence of how far the fire had ravaged the adjacent Myall Lakes national park. It remained at a 'watch and act' alert level on Monday evening.

A Hub of Emergency Response

In Bulahdelah, though, it would appear as a typical day if not for the helicopters circling overhead and acrid odor hanging in the atmosphere.

A fuel depot for aircraft has been set up at the town’s showground, transforming it into a base for around 300 emergency personnel who have come from across the state to help.

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

First-Hand Stories from the Blaze

Plumes of smoke were continuing to emit from glowing hotspots on Emu Creek Road, a meandering country road that hugs a creek bed south of the township where two houses were lost.

On a boundary post outside a burnt property, a scorched stuffed toy remained attached to the log, complete with a Christmas hat.

Down the road, Morgan sat on his porch with his two dogs, a small area of green surrounding his house the only remaining sign of how the area once appeared. Against the odds, his property was spared, despite his neighbour’s burning to the ground.

He recalled receiving a call from a friend at lunchtime on Saturday, warning him “you’ve got about half an hour and then a fire’s going to hit”. His prediction was accurate.

“We doused the buildings and shed down, sprayed the fence line,” he said, and then his reaction turned to “panic”. “I thought, ‘what have I gotten into’,” he said. “But I refused to leave.”

Fortunately, crews protected the home, and succeeded in defending it. The bushfire passed over in about half an hour, with a sound resembling “a roaring inferno”.

An Environment Altered

Morgan, who has resided at the same house for around 30 years, has never seen the land so dry.

“We used to get rain every week,” he said. “This intensity is new. But you’ve got to take the good with the bad.”

On the same street, Jeff Curley was caring for his friend’s property which had also largely survived Saturday’s blaze, other than a broken headlight on a car and a barrel of firewood stored for winter that had burnt to ash.

“I’ve been here many, many times,” he said. “Previously a fire almost approached a nearby ridge and that was pretty scary then, but the wind changed.

“The dryness is extreme now. Flames emerged on all sides, and the firies essentially protected it [the property].”

This experience wasn’t new for Curley, who nearly lost his home in Wattle Grove when fires swept through in 2019.

“You see people on the news say, ‘I can’t believe how fast it came’,” he said. “You think it’s over there, and all of a sudden it’s on top of you. I understand the feeling. I told my friend to just get out, and he did.”

Official Response and Ongoing Threat

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 firefighting operation and had done an “amazing job” saving properties from being destroyed.

She said all agencies had “worked as one” after the tragic loss of one of their own.

“Firefighters is one big family,” she said. “However, the danger is not over.

“We’ve seen the Pacific Highway open and close a few times, the fire jump backwards and forwards. It’s still not contained, it is expected to spread.”

Channon said work in the immediate future would center on the small community of Nerong, which was anticipated to be impacted by the Pacific Highway blaze on Monday evening. Residents had been urged to leave if not prepared, and have a fire plan.

“Little fires are igniting from storm activity a few days ago,” she said.

“The forecast is the mid-thirties with variable wind, and that has been difficult - wind swirls in the area.”