Paul Bibby
Recovery meetings for residents affected by the ongoing bushfire emergency will be held in Tenterfield and Drake today (Tuesday) and tomorrow (Wednesday).
The Tenterfield meeting will include disaster welfare, rural financial counselling, rural adversity mental health, Legal Aid and more.
RFS volunteers fighting the bushfire near Tarragon. Image: Ewan WillisThis meeting will be held at Tenterfield Memorial Hall, 96 Molesworth St, from 11am, with support services available between 11 and 2.
The Drake meeting will be held on Wednesday at Drake community hall from 1pm with a barbecue from 12:30pm.
The Drake and Tabulam fire remains at a Watch and Act alert level according to the Rural Fire Service (RFS).
The RFS said the blaze had burnt through 60,000 hectares.
The Service’s Building Impact Assessment team has confirmed that 16 homes had been destroyed.
However this number may change as the fire continues to burn and crews have been unable to complete their assessment.
This brings the total number of homes destroyed by fire across the state so far this fire season to 26.
Many hundreds of homes have been saved, including 170 at the Drake fire alone.
Across NSW, the latest confirmed losses from the fires are:
- 26 homes destroyed, 13 damaged, 612 in the direct area saved
- 6 facilities destroyed, 2 damaged, 51 saved
- 77 outbuildings destroyed, 50 damaged, 545 saved.
Seven homes were destroyed at the Bees Nest fire near Armidale, two homes were destroyed at the Shark Creek bush fire near Yamba and one at the Mount McKenzie Road bush fire near Tenterfield.
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