Blaze on the gale

NSW bushfire destroys 70 houses

RESIDENTS of a small town in southern NSW were extremely unlucky strong winds pushed in a bushfire that destroyed almost 100 homes, cabins and caravans.

Five fires initially started around Bega near the south coast on Sunday in “extraordinary” conditions with wind gusts up to 90 km/h, Rural Fire Service commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons said.

The main firefront spread straight towards the ocean and the coastal town of Tathra.

“If the fire was a few hundred metres further north or a few hundred metres further south it would have likely gone right past Tathra,” Mr Fitzsimmons said yesterday.

“But sadly the direction the winds blew this fire put it right into the centre of the township.”

Fire crews yesterday confirmed 69 houses and 30 caravans or cabins were destroyed. A further 39 houses were damaged with nearly 400 saved.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull was shocked at the destruction.

“Thank heaven there have been no lives lost,” he told reporters during a visit to the evacuation centre in nearby Bega.

“That’s a great tribute to the community, to the firefighters, to all of that preparation and resilience.”

Residents are anxious to get back into Tathra to assess their homes but first authorities need to make the environment is safe.

Power, utilities and communications need to be fixed and there is the potential threat of asbestos.

The main road between Bega and Tathra is being used as a control line to fight the blaze, which remained uncontained last night.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian defended the manner in which locals were warned of the impending inferno.

Warnings were delivered via mobiles and also landline phone calls. Emergency warnings were very targeted, with some people told to stay and others advised to evacuate, she said in Bega.

“Because of the location, mobile phone reception is not always possible and I understand very early on some of the phone towers were damaged themselves,” Ms Berejiklian said.

“Communication was a challenge, but I’m absolutely confident we did everything we could as quickly as possible to get the message out.”

Mr Fitzsimmons said authorities had discussed at length the risks posed by the extreme weather conditions, and there were total fire bans across two thirds of the state.

The RFS website was also regularly updated.

“The teams have done a pretty extraordinary job given the circumstances that were confronting them,” he said.

“Our primary focus must always be the preservation of life and at this stage . . . something worked to keep everybody alive in what could otherwise have been a more horrendous situation.”

Two firefighters suffered heat exhaustion while a woman in her 40s suffered minor burn injuries.

Crews were trying to contain the fire on yesterday afternoon in more favourable weather conditions.

Today’s forecast suggests possible showers, which would help firefighters.

The township of Tathra has been officially declared a disaster area and schools in the area remain closed.

The Insurance Council of Australia has declared the fire a catastrophe, meaning claims by those affected by the blaze will be given priority.

There were 19 fires burning across NSW yesterday with 12 uncontained.