Natural disaster declaration opens recovery funding after Redhead bushfire

newy.com.au – Lake Macquarie was declared a natural disaster area by the Australian and NSW governments following the Redhead bushfire that burned more than 90 hectares between Redhead, Dudley, Whitebridge and Gateshead.

The declaration unlocks joint federal–state recovery funding for residents, businesses, primary producers and Lake Macquarie City Council, after a weekend blaze that came within metres of homes and an aged care facility and forced the closure of the popular Fernleigh Track.

Lake Macquarie Mayor Adam Shultz said the move by the Albanese and Minns governments would help the city deal with the cost of the emergency and its aftermath. “We are grateful to the Albanese and Minns governments for supporting the Lake Macquarie community during this time of need,” he said. “From Council’s perspective, it may mean we can access financial assistance covering the cost to reopen the Fernleigh Track.” while funding is available to reimburse emergency service organisations for firefighting and other disaster response costs.

The Fernleigh Track corridor remains closed between Redhead and Whitebridge because of the risk of fire-weakened trees falling without warning. Council inspections earlier in the week found more than a dozen at-risk trees, including large eucalypts, along the fire-affected section. Manager City Works Matthew Brogan said “the initial fire burns the outside of the tree, but some might keep smouldering for quite a while even after the flames have been extinguished,” leaving tonnes of timber that can drop suddenly across the path. Council has urged people not to duck under tape or barriers while contractors remove the trees and has promised updates once a reopening timeline is clearer.

The Redhead blaze is understood to have started on Saturday evening in thick bush near the Fernleigh Track, close to Oakdale Road, before running quickly through scrub to the edge of Redhead Road. At the height of the fire, NSW Rural Fire Service issued an emergency warning for residents near the Whiddon Nursing Home and surrounding streets, telling people it was too late to leave and to seek shelter inside a solid building. Hundreds of firefighting crews from NSW Rural Fire Service and Fire and Rescue NSW, backed by helicopters, a heavy-lift Chinook and fixed-wing aircraft, worked through the night on property protection.

Lake Macquarie joins a list of fire-affected NSW LGAs now under natural disaster declarations, including the Central Coast, Mid Coast, Upper Hunter, Muswellbrook, Warrumbungle and Dubbo, where fires in recent days have destroyed homes at Koolewong and Bulahdelah.

Mayor Shultz said the Redhead experience had highlighted both the danger of fast-moving fires on the city’s fringe and the efforts of residents and emergency services. He said the new declaration would help council cover the cost of reopening key community assets like the Fernleigh Track and support agencies that fought the blaze “over the weekend and into this week”.