This was published 6 years ago
'Scared' Mallacoota locals determined to protect their beloved town
Three days after he lost his Mallacoota home, Russell Marriott is pouring beers behind the bar at the town’s pub, trying to quantify a tragedy he says the town will take a decade to recover from.
He hasn’t had a moment’s sleep since his life was up-ended on Tuesday morning, but he doesn’t plan on going back to Melbourne, where he moved from eight years ago.
“We’ve still got a fire to fight … I’ve got mates’ places that needs defending. Just because they're not mine, doesn’t mean they’re not worth fighting for,” he says, as hundreds of stranded residents and tourists prepare to evacuate on a navy vessel on Friday.
Mr Marriott explains that many of the homes destroyed were built by their owners. In a town with one road in and one road out, raw materials are expensive to acquire and there are very few building companies.
Many of the far-east Victorian town’s major employers had their buildings destroyed, including the bowls club and the state’s largest abalone co-op, a local treasure that employs about 30 people.
In a town of only about 1000 permanent residents, these losses are "totally devastating", according to Mr Marriott, who says the rebuilding of the town will be made more difficult by its geographic isolation.
"This is a once-in-a-generation event and we'll take a decade or more to recover," he says.
Mallacoota has a distinctly alternative vibe. Outside the pub on Thursday evening, four young men stood playing folk music in their ponchos.
The town attracts an eclectic variety of tourists in summer, and has a strong conservationist culture. It's what Mr Marriott loves about the town.
As the brawny 45-year-old tends the bar on Thursday night, those drinking the beer he's poured are discussing the forecast hot weather this weekend, and whether to leave town or stay.
Rhys Kingdon, 21, drove to Mallacoota in the days before the fire to help his grandparents, Alf and Penny, get through any potential danger. He had no idea how great that danger would be.
He says he’s staying put: “I’m ready on Saturday to hop on the roof and stay there trying to fight embers … we’re going to fight again.”
Kevin Gleed is also remaining in town. He watched Tuesday morning’s firestorm from about one kilometre away at Harrisons Channel, where he took his 10-year-old daughter to fish for prawns in anticipation of the blaze.
He watched his town burn from a distance – the orange glow assisting his vision of the crustaceans ahead of him. “It was hideous,” he says.
“I won’t be leaving, taking a boat out or anything.
“The only thing putting out this fire is when it runs out of fuel. No rain or anything else is putting this out ... I'll be here for it if it comes back."
Mr Marriott agrees the town might not have seen the end of the fire.
"I honestly think it’s coming back here," he says. "I’m scared – we all are."
Nothing could compare to the scene Mr Marriott witnessed on Tuesday morning – a morning that will be remembered for the black sky that appeared over Mallacoota when the sun would usually rise.
As the former high-end chef explains, he stayed at his home “until it got stupid” about 5am. By that time, his area of the town near the shore at Bastion Point was under heavy ember attack.
Mr Marriott rode his pushbike to the home of an elderly woman, who lives behind the pub he works at, to help her defend her place.
Some time after that home was saved from the worst of the fire front, he rode back to his street.
After the main fire front tore through the street, it was hit by an ember attack, and the street was ignited by spot fires.
He saw the places he loved burnt to ash as he rode towards his home: Hannah's place, Max’s place, and the bowls club – all on fire.
When he arrived at his block, he knew his house would no longer be standing. Not a single structure on his bush-covered block survived.
"My savings are gone, my house is gone … everything's gone.”
Paul Sakkal is Chief Political Correspondent. He previously covered Victorian politics and won a Walkley award and the 2025 Press Gallery Journalist of the Year. Contact him securely on Signal @paulsakkal.14.Connect via X or email.