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When Garry Morgan returned to his property on the end of the week, his rural mid-north coast property was encircled by a dense smoke column. Less than twenty-four hours later, two dwellings on his street were destroyed, and the adjacent bushland became charred remnants.

A Community at the Centre of Tragedy

The township of Bulahdelah, approximately 235km north of Sydney, has become at the centre of a devastating event after a experienced firefighter died on Sunday evening when he was hit by a falling tree. This represents a worrying commencement to the fire season.

Four structures have been destroyed in the broader Bulahdelah area, including two on Emu Creek Road, where Morgan lives, one on the Pacific Highway and one south of the township.

“No words can express it,” 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 tourists journeying up the mid-north coast to beach areas such as Seal Rocks, Forster and Port Macquarie.

On Monday afternoon, the highway south of town was blanketed in dense, ochre-hazed smoke. Aircraft conducting water drops circled above, assisting ground crews who were battling a fire that had scorched 4,000 hectares since Friday.

Heavy vehicles reduced speed for road markers and reduce-speed signs, the blackened gum trees and burnt grass on each side of the highway proof 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 another ordinary day if not for the aircraft overhead and smell of smoke lingering in the air.

A refuelling station for aircraft has been set up at the town’s showground, converting it into a base for around 300 firefighters 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

Plumes of smoke were still rising from glowing hotspots on Emu Creek Road, a winding rural street that hugs a creek bed south of the township where two houses were lost.

On a fence post outside a destroyed home, a charred teddy bear remained pinned 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 landscape used to look. Miraculously, 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 blaze will arrive”. His prediction was accurate.

“We hosed down the property and shed down, sprayed the fence line,” he said, and then his reaction turned to “panic”. “I thought, ‘this is overwhelming’,” he said. “I decided to stay.”

Fortunately, crews protected the home, and managed to save it. The bushfire moved through in about half an hour, sounding like “a thunderous blaze”.

An Environment Altered

Morgan, who has resided at the same house for around 30 years, has not witnessed the land so dry.

“It once rained 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, except for a broken headlight 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. “Previously a fire almost approached a nearby ridge and that was quite frightening then, but the wind changed.

“The conditions are far more arid now. The fire approached from all directions, and the firefighters pretty much saved it [the property].”

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

“You hear reports say, ‘I can’t believe how fast it came’,” he said. “You think it’s over there, and suddenly it's upon you. I know what it’s like. I told my friend to just get out, and he did.”

Official Response and Ongoing Threat

Kirsty Channon, spokesperson for the NSW Rural Fire Service, said crews from multiple agencies had come from “across the coastal region” to help with the firefighting operation and had done an “amazing job” saving properties from being destroyed.

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

“Firefighters is one big family,” she said. “But we’re definitely not out of the woods yet.

“We’ve seen the Pacific Highway closing and reopening a few times, the fire jump backwards and forwards. It remains uncontained, it is expected to spread.”

Channon said efforts in the coming hours would center on the small community 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.

“Spot fires 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 changes direction in the area.”