Upper Murray fire: Survival and devastation emerges from Corryong community

The Upper Murray township was saved from the Green Valley fire which has ripped through more than 110,000 hectares with the land burnt right up to the first home on the outskirts of town.

The town is still cut off from power, phone reception and the wider community with many loved ones still "unaccounted for".

Up to 15 homes have been destroyed by fire in Cudgewa with that number expected to rise as the damage continues to be assessed.

Incident controller Leith McKenzie said the fire front is a "long distance" south of Corryong and "has a chance" of joining up with the east Gippsland fires.

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"Who knows if that will occur but there is always a chance with the strong winds that it could happen," he said.

"We are doing a lot of forward planning for what is expected to happen on Friday and Saturday with the hot weather."

Emergency and watch and act warnings remain in place for the majority of the Upper Murray.

Some Corryong residents were convoyed out of town on Wednesday night after spending two days without power, fresh running water or phone reception.

Festival-goers from Nariel Creek were "too scared to leave" on Saturday night so decided to stay and only just survived the "extraordinary blaze" which came within metres of the 87 people who were left behind.

Albury woman Jan Bowler, who attends the Nariel Creek Folk Festival every year, said an organiser saved the group of people dubbed "the survivors".

"We were just metres from the fire as it ripped through in front of us," she told The Border Mail.

"Everyone was hands on deck as we saw the fire come over the hill and right down to the creek - we were on the other side.

"I have never seen anything like it. We had wet towels by the creek just hoping we would come out alive."

Cudgewa has been gutted by the fire with just a few homes, the pub and football club still standing, surrounded by blackened land and destroyed properties.

CFA volunteer and local farmer Greg Albert couldn't save his property on Monday night.

"It is all gone," he said.

"Our livestock are still alive but I haven't seen them. What can we do though? You just have to start again don't you."

Mr Albert, who drove seven hours on Monday night from Bendigo to help fight the blaze, said they did the best they could.

"We lost a lot, but we saved a lot too," he said.

"I am exhausted but we are lucky our family is OK and that is all that matters."

Distressed farming families made a desperate plea to the wider North East community to lend a helping hand getting farms back to being "functional".

"We need help," Amy Paton said with tears running down her face.

"We have no fodder, we have nowhere to put livestock, we can't milk our cows, we just need some help.

"There is a lot of us in the same situation and we need farm help. Help with fencing and food and generators."

Mrs Paton and her neighbour Sarah Klippel spoke of their entire farms being "completely burnt out".

"We have just 15 acres left, that is 1500 acres completely burnt, one of our properties has been wiped out," Mrs Klippel said.

"We can account for some of our cattle but we have no food, we have lost 1000 hay bales, we have nothing to feed them.

"This is a legacy of our farms that is now completely gone.

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"My father-in-law is 80 and he has never seen anything like this - we have multiple properties and it is all pretty much gone except for our homes.

"It is an unbelievable experience, we have three children who have been fantastic but we don't want to take them home because their chooks are dead and their animals aren't well.

"But I know we aren't the only ones who have been through this experience."

Fifth-generation dairy farmer and fellow neighbour Emma Paton said the fire was "moving like a snake".

"My father-in-law said it was just moving so quickly and jumping forward and up and over the hills," she said.

"Our home is OK, the dairy is OK and the herd is fine but we have nowhere to put them and nothing to feed them."

Thologolong woman Gina Sutherland is calling for donations of hay to help the farmers.

"Basically from Burrowye Station up to Walwa it is black paddocks, it's just a moonscape and that goes to the top of the mountain," she said.

"If we got a convoy of hay, even in wheelbarrows, even if they weren't allowed in, they could take it off and there would be local trucks and tractors that could pick it up and take it further on.

"We need help, manpower, to be able to feed out.

"We are a close knit community, Walwa, Jingellic and down to around Corryong, and we look out for each other if we can."

Anyone who might be able to help the Upper Murray farmers can contact Mrs Sutherland on (02) 6020 2039.