Lismore's Duck Pond Espresso Bar manager Noreen Colley and some good friends collected a truck load of supplies, including clothes and furniture, and drove it to the fire recovery centre at Drake on Sunday. 

“After the bush fires, these guys are doing it damn tough,” Noreen said. 

“The highway to Drake is closed again today because the wind has shifted and the highway is blocked by the continuing fires.

“Over 50,000 hectares is burnt out and at Drake, the fire burnt right up to the door of the pub.”

Noreen is calling for Lismore residents to help and donate essential food supplies to people in need who have been affected by the fires in the Drake area. 

“They are in dire straits and need essential food supplies,” she said. “People need butter, sugar, flour, long life milk, detergent and washing powder. 

“Many people these don’t have a fridge or cooking facilities because their houses burned down.

“And bottled water is always a necessity - a lot of their plastic water tanks melted in the fires.” 

Noreen said she felt the need to help the Drake community because giving neighbourly help and support was important.

“When Lismore has got into trouble with big floods and storms, the Tabulum and Drake guys are some of the first teams to come here to help us out,’ she said. 

“Fire is worse than flood. In Lismore, we can clean up and hose down after a flood, but in the fires, these poor guys have nothing – everything was burnt. 

“They have no furniture, their vehicles were burned and they were left standing in what they were wearing.

“It’s enough to make you cry.

Noreen and friends collecting donations to take to the Drake fire recovery centre.

“My friend Kevin from ABL removals said 'here’s my truck', so I put a call out last week and collected lots of things from people in the Lismore community, including lounge suites.”

Noreen said when she arrived in Drake with the truck yesterday, the first thing the people these said to her was ‘would you like a cup of tea?’

“I thought that was beautiful that they had so little but wanted to share. 

“I sat down beside them and one guy told me he and his two dogs just got out and his machinery shed burnt to the ground. 

“He told me he could use the lounge we brought as a bed, so he had something to sleep on.  

“It breaks your heart – when we were driving there yesterday, all I could see was black by the die of the road.”

Noreen said when she saw people in the fire recovery centre, she was amazed that people were only taking small items as they needed.

“They are thinking of their neighbours as well,” she said. “We drove away thinking ‘this is unreal’.”

Noreen said the need for supplies was so dire because so may people has lost their vehicles and couldn’t drive anywhere to get supplies, and that the highways were often closed.

“Even the school run buses have been cancelled,” she said, “A bus left Lismore the other day and didn’t make it to Tabulam – it was turned around and sent home. 

“Even if people do leave home to get supplies, there’s no guarantee they will be able to get home again.”

If you would like to donate essential, non-perishable food supplies or any other donations to the people affected by fire in Drake, contact Noreen on 0416 254 121 or drop off donations at the Duck Pond Expresso Bar on Union Street, next to the South Lismore Post Office, between 6am and 2pm.

“If I get enough supplies to fill up a car by Wednesday and the road is open again, I’ll go out there – otherwise, I’ll take it all out there later in the week,” Noreen said.