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As Garry Morgan returned to his property on Friday afternoon, his rural mid-north coast property was surrounded by a massive cloud of smoke. Within twenty-four hours later, two dwellings on his street were consumed, and the surrounding forest was transformed into charred remnants.

A Community at the Centre of Tragedy

The township of Bulahdelah, approximately 235km north of Sydney, has found itself at the heart of a devastating event after a veteran firefighter lost his life on Sunday evening when he was struck by a falling tree. This represents a ominous beginning to the fire season.

A total of four homes have been destroyed in the wider Bulahdelah area, comprising two on Emu Creek Road, the residence of Garry Morgan, one on the Pacific Highway and one south of the township.

“Words fail to capture it,” Morgan stated. “My dogs stayed right by me, it was frightening.”

Landscapes of Loss and Fortitude

Bulahdelah is a frequent rest stop 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. Water-bombing helicopters hovered overhead, aiding firefighters on the ground who were working to contain a fire that had consumed 4,000 hectares since Friday.

Passing trucks slowed to observe road markers and warning signs, the scorched trees 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' alert level on Monday evening.

A Hub of Emergency Response

In Bulahdelah, though, it would seem like a typical day if not for the aircraft overhead and smell of smoke lingering in the air.

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

On Monday afternoon, water bottles were being offloaded from trucks and lollies were being packaged into zip lock bags. One firefighter estimated that they needed a bottle of water every 20 minutes when on the active fire ground.

First-Hand Stories from the Blaze

Plumes of smoke were continuing to emit from spots of embers on Emu Creek Road, a winding rural street that follows a creek bed south of the township where two houses were lost.

On a fence post outside a burnt property, a charred teddy bear remained attached to the log, complete with 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 area once appeared. Miraculously, his property was spared, despite his neighbor's home 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 timing was precise.

“We sprayed the house and shed down, wet the perimeter,” he said, and then his reaction turned to “alarm”. “I said to myself, ‘what the hell have I got myself into’,” he said. “I decided to stay.”

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

A Landscape Transformed

Morgan, who has lived in the same house for around 30 years, has never seen the land in such a dry state.

“We used to get 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 largely survived Saturday’s blaze, except for a broken headlight on a car and a container of wood stored for winter that had been reduced to ashes.

“I’ve been here many, many times,” he said. “A few years ago a fire almost approached a nearby ridge and that was quite frightening then, but the wind changed.

“It’s just so much drier this time. The fire approached from all directions, and the firefighters essentially protected it [the property].”

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

“You hear reports say, ‘The speed was unbelievable’,” he said. “You think it’s over there, and suddenly it’s on top of 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 assist in the firefighting operation and had done an “incredible work” saving properties from being destroyed.

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

“The firefighting community 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 spot across the road. It remains uncontained, it is expected to spread.”

Channon said efforts in the coming hours would focus on the tiny township of Nerong, which was anticipated to be impacted by the highway fire on Monday evening. Authorities advised locals to leave if not prepared, and have a fire plan.

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

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