Bushfire Catches Nowra Residents Off Guard
NSW warned of dangerous conditions.
Tony McLean’s mother Sue was initially “cool, calm and collected” — even “a bit blasé” — when she first heard of yesterday’s bushfire. Like many others in the NSW south coast town of Nowra, Ms McLean didn’t think a winter blaze could be the real deal.
But her mood changed when she realised what they were up against.
“She was s **** g herself,” Mr McLean said.
Ms McLean thought everything was fine, but then she saw the flames.
“I was looking out the kitchen window and it was there,” she said.
She jumped in the car, driving away convinced her house would be a pile of ash when she returned.
The Nowra fire was one of three blazes in New South Wales that was threatening properties, although no homes were destroyed. The other blazes — one near Ulladulla and another in the Bega Valley — have burnt more than 4600 hectares. On the mid-north coast, four firefighters were injured when their truck rolled.
They were fighting a grass fire at Caparra, west of Taree and a 71-year-old man was taken to hospital with suspected spinal injuries. In Nowra, authorities responded quickly and Mr McLean’s house was saved.
“I was shocked to see it still standing,” he said.
“If the Shellharbour fire brigade wasn’t nearby, we would have lost the house.”