Act of kindness amid bushfire crisis at Kempsey

He didn't lose any livestock and there is a circle around his house where the fire split and went either side due to the ring of green grass around the home.

But there is only 20 hectares left of his 222ha property that hasn't been burned from the fires that roared though his property at Mungay Flat west of Kempsey.

"It was like a fireball," is how Mark's wife Suzanna described the fire.

Suzanna was working in Kempsey (about 30 minutes from her home) when they noticed embers in the sky.

She raced home to find Mark and their son Lochie had everything ready to go.

"It was really smoky...we rang the neighbour across the river and he said the fire was right there," she said.

"We had the horses yarded and we put them on the truck and Mark told me I would have to take them while he stayed there.

"I don't normally drive the truck but I got down to Skillion Flat so they could be taken elsewhere."

Suzanna met her daughter Sally and brother-in-law Ian Argue from Kempsey Stock and Land - and together they headed back towards their property.

"I rang Mark and he said it had got bad," she said.

Suzanna said Mark drove one kilometre down from the house to see where the fire was but by the time he turned the car around "it was at his heels".

"He had to seek shelter as the flames coming up the flat were six feet high," she said.

When it was safe he went back to the house and started putting out spot fires that had ignited around the home.

Then help arrived.

"Ian and Mark fought the spot fires for three hours in the paddock to keep it away from the house," she said.

"We had good help but the wind kept changing...we were lucky."

Suzanna said they were also fortunate as they had land down on the flood plains, which was where they would take their livestock.

But many others did not.

"We will have to sell a lot of young cattle," she said.

"And it's not over yet, the fire is at Temagog so we can't leave home in case of the embers."

Paul Younie, who is Willawarrin fire brigade captain and local landholder, lost about 80 percent of pasture on their 202ha property.

"The season has been dry so we destocked from 120 cows to 30 cattle," he said.

"Now we will have to destock altogether soon as there is no rain expected until January."

"This fire will change the landscape here forever."

"To come up and do what you have done, we will always remember this," was what an emotional Willawarrin Hotel publican Karen Anderson said about the kindness of four strangers.

Four mates Jawad Nabouche, Malek Eid, Omar Shmait and Talal Kanj drove five hours from Sydney Saturday morning to deliver food to the fire affected region west of Kempsey.

The chose Kempsey because they had seen the images in the media about what had happened and they wanted to help.

"It's the least we could do," Jawad Nabouche said.

They all chipped in money with one friend donating $1500 alone to buy much-needed supplies.

Early Saturday morning they packed up the car and trailer with more than 400 sausages, bread, onions, 100 packets of banana bread and muffins, 50 contains of salad and rice, boxes of fruit, 1500 bottles of water and headed north.

They arrived at Kempsey Showground evacuation centre around 11am where they met with Kempsey Shire Council Mayor Liz Campbell and council director Robert Fish who took them up to Willawarrin Hotel so they could cook a barbecue lunch for those affected by the bushfires.

"This has meant a lot to the town," Ms Anderson said.

"The fact they organised the food, got in the car and came up here because they wanted to help us speaks volumes.

"They could come back in 12 months time and people will remember them, they will be welcomed as family."