One was the evacuation of Ned Ashley, who was suffering badly from smoke inhalation. He had collapsed, overcome by smoke inhalation but was pulled from danger by a male police officer, dragged to the footpath where was attended to by a female officer before being taken to safety by friends. 

There were the staff from the nearby service who brought cases of bottled water to hand out to emergency services people and residents being evacuated. 

And there was an Ulladulla woman, who was trying to get home. Instead of detouring around the scene, she arrived with a tray of coffees for those fighting the fires.

The professional and calm manner in which residents, whose properties were under threat, were evacuated and reassured by the police, fire crews and neighbours made a terrible situation so much better.

At the RFS command post at Milton, in conditions that can only be described as apocalyptic, there was a calm determination sweetened with humour and kindness. 

With water bombing helicopters landing and taking off, it felt as if a military operation was under way.

The frontline heroes, returning blackened and tired, were offered food, water and encouraging words from the rear echelon heroes – the people who kept the food and water coming and those in charge of the operation.

That kindness and care was extended to the media, there reporting on the unfolding emergency. 

Some of the firefighters had been on callout since the early hours of Wednesday and they weren’t just attending to fires. Two accidents on the Princes Highway were added to their task lists.

With such intense winds blowing the smoke column almost horizontal, locating the actual fire front was especially challenging. Visibility was cut right down and because smoke conducts heat, even infrared imaging was difficult.

It is remarkable there was no loss of life or serious property loss.

What is alarming, however, is that we’re still two weeks from winter yet somehow arrived at a situation with blazes from Queensland to the Victorian border. 

That’s a serious wake-up call we all need to heed.