SHELTERING in a bunker saved three former Albury residents from an "insane" firestorm that hit an Upper Murray farm north of Tooma on New Year's Eve.
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Wagga councillor Vanessa Keenan holed up in the Hebel brick structure with David Lyons and her mother Colleen Keenan.
Mr Lyons runs Hesperia Vineyard at the property with chardonnay and pinot noir grapes.
He is a former Albury North Public School teacher, while Ms Keenan lectured at Albury TAFE and still occasionally instructs at Charles Sturt University.
They and Cr Keenan were warned at 6am Tuesday that a fire was bound for them, by 8.30am a neighbour's paddock was alight and at 10.30am with flames running quickly they entered the bunker.
They spent the next three hours hiding, with Cr Keenan and Mr Lyons emerging twice and on the first occasion pine trees were crowning 45 metres into the air.
"It was unbelievable - the size of the flames and the sound," Cr Keenan said.
"Dave and I were standing at the gate and I said 'oh my God' and that was the roar of the firestorm coming up from the ridge and coming straight for us."
The bunker is three by three metres with sheet metal over a solid timber door and windows barricaded.
Sitting on camp chairs and accompanied by two chihuahuas, the trio, with no power or phone reception, were trying to make jokes and thankful for a sprinkler system that eventually pumped half a megalitre of water.
"There was a level of nervousness and anxiety but it wasn't spoken of, particularly as Dave and I had seen a lot more than mum had," Cr Keenan, who described the fire front as "insane", said.
Leaving the bunker in the afternoon they were greeted with blackened surrounds before entering a hut.
"There was a piece of toast left from the morning and Dave picked it up and I said 'I hope your toast isn't burnt' and we sat for a while and had a cup of tea," Cr Keenan said.
By nightfall there was a New Year's Eve show.
"Every two to three minutes we would hear a tree fall and it liked like Christmas lights with the way it was lit up," Cr Keenan said.
On Thursday, having made it to Wagga on Wednesday night, Cr Keenan was still in a bit of shock.
"We were lucky we had that protection, so many other people didn't and I can't imagine going through that sheltering in a house," Cr Keenan said.
C Keenan says her bushfire experience illustrated why she had pushed for her city to declare a climate emergency last year that was adopted but rescinded shortly afterwards.
"That's what we were talking about (with the climate emergency motion) and I plan to write an open letter to (Deputy Prime Minister) Michael McCormack," Cr Keenan, a Labor Party member, said.
"Look at what this has done to the economy, yet we hear renewables are too expensive."
Cr Keenan said it was clear the fires would have a huge impact on the town of Tumbarumba, where she owns a property.
"Tumbarumba will be devastated from this with the impact on the wine industry, the softwood plantations and Costa berries, the biggest berry farm in the area," she said.
"They are the three biggest industries, the other one is the prison (farm at Mannus)."
Prisoners were due to be taken from the jail to Junee prison on Thursday afternoon because of the ongoing bushfires.
