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When a local resident returned to his property on the end of the week, his home on the coastal fringe was encircled by a massive cloud of smoke. Within twenty-four hours later, a pair of homes on his street were consumed, and the nearby woodland would be reduced to a scorched landscape.

A Community at the Centre of Tragedy

The township of Bulahdelah, around 235km north of Sydney, has become at the centre of a tragedy after a experienced firefighter lost his life on Sunday evening when he was hit by a falling tree. This marks a worrying commencement to the wildfire period.

A total of four homes 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. “My canine companions remained close, 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 mid-north coast to coastal destinations such as Seal Rocks, Forster and Port Macquarie.

On Monday afternoon, the highway south of town was blanketed in thick, orange smoke. Water-bombing helicopters circled above, assisting firefighters on the ground who were attempting to quash a blaze that had scorched 4,000 hectares since Friday.

Transport vehicles slowed to observe road markers and reduce-speed signs, the blackened gum trees and charred grass on each side of the highway evidence of how far the fire had burnt 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 appear as a typical day if not for the aircraft overhead and scent of burning hanging in the atmosphere.

A refuelling station for aircraft has been set up at the town’s showground, converting it into a central point for around 300 fire crews and volunteers who have travelled from across the state to help.

On Monday afternoon, supplies of water were being unloaded 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 active fire ground.

Personal Accounts from the Fireground

Billows of smoke were continuing to emit from glowing hotspots on Emu Creek Road, a winding rural street 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, still wearing a Christmas hat.

Further along, 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 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 blaze will arrive”. His estimate was spot on.

“We sprayed the house and shed down, sprayed the fence line,” he said, and then his reaction turned to “panic”. “I said to myself, ‘what have I gotten into’,” he said. “But I wasn’t leaving.”

Fortunately, crews protected the home, and managed to save it. The bushfire passed over in about half an hour, with a sound resembling “a thunderous blaze”.

A Landscape Transformed

Morgan, who has lived in the same house for around 30 years, has not witnessed the land this parched.

“It once rained rain every week,” he said. “Fires of this magnitude are unprecedented. 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 mostly been spared Saturday’s blaze, except for a damaged light on a car and a barrel of firewood stored for winter that had been reduced to ashes.

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

“The conditions are far more arid now. It came from everywhere, and the firies essentially protected it [the property].”

This was not a novel situation for Curley, who nearly lost his home in Wattle Grove when fires swept through in 2019.

“You hear reports say, ‘The speed was unbelievable’,” he said. “It seems distant, and suddenly it surrounds you. I know what it’s like. I told my friend to evacuate immediately, and he did.”

Fire Service Update and Continuing Danger

Kirsty Channon, public information officer for the NSW Rural Fire Service, said crews from multiple agencies had come from “across the coastal region” 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.

“Firefighters is a close-knit group,” 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 remains uncontained, it will continue to grow.”

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 evacuate if unprepared, and have a fire plan.

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

“The forecast is mid 30s with shifting winds, and that has been difficult - wind swirls in the area.”