Coolagolite Road fire: Black Summer survivors will be triggered, mayor says

Across the South Coast that smell is there again - fire.

The sky grows dark and golden as thick plumes of smoke rise endlessly into the sky.

The heat is smothering, airways constrict and it seems impossible to take in a full breath.

Read more: Inside the anxious wait as South Coast bushfire raged towards homes

This week's fire on the Far South Coast will absolutely be triggering for local residents, but also those in the Illawarra and wider South Coast, mayor Russell Fitzpatrick said.

He spoke to the Mercury moments after he stepped out of an emergency planning meeting to help his community deal with the Coolagolite Road fire.

It ignited on Tuesday afternoon, and by 2pm on Wednesday it had burnt through 5268 hectares of bushland and was still out-of-control.

"The fire was horrendous on Tuesday," he said.

"There's fear and anxiety right throughout our community. I realise this could be a trigger. If you need support, speak to your neighbours."

The summer of 2019-20 will forever be known as Black Summer, and the South Coast bore the brunt of wild fires that destroyed homes and businesses, killed lifestock and wildlife, and left people dead.

Three years later communities are still recovering and the Coolagolite Road fire has reignited fear for many people.

The Black Summer fires ripped through Cobargo and Quaama in December 2019, and for Corbago Hotel owner David Allen this week's fires took him back to three years ago.

At midday on Tuesday the power went out at his popular pub just as they were serving lunches, not long after the Coolagolite Road fire started.

From his pub he could see thick plumes of smoke shrouding over the landscape and it left him feeling the same fear he had during the Black Summer fires.

"The smoke, it's a smell you never forget and it's triggering," he said.

A recovery centre will be established in Bermagui in coming days to help provide information and support for residents on how they can recover from this week's blaze.

The Illawarra escaped the Black Summer fires, and so far this season it has largely remained free of major fires, but former fire chief Greg Mullins warned there is complacency.

"We've got very heavy fuel loads in the very locations where historically, we've lost the most homes. Suburbs of Sydney, the Illawarra, Newcastle, Central Coast, not touched by Black Summer," he recently told the Mercury.

The former Fire and Rescue NSW Commissioner and long-time volunteer firefighter, said too many people switch off and say "it will never happen to me".

"Take it seriously. There's huge complacency, but also a growing attitude that the government has to do everything for everyone," he said.

"People need to understand their risks, embrace their risks, and know what to do about it."

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