Dorrigo Chamber of Commerce president Patsy Green told the Bellingen Shire Courier-Sun the road closure had impacted on local businesses, some more than others.

“It did make things difficult, particularly for primary producers who weren’t able to get workers where they needed to be, and to move their produce. Plus, we ran out of diesel on the Wednesday afternoon,” Patsy said.

However, she acknowledged there was no safe option for anything other than the closure of the main road between Thora and the plateau.

“I did speak with some of the emergency services workers and there was real concern that some trees could fall, and in fact a few actually did,” Patsy said.

While Waterfall Way is periodically closed by landslips in the wake of heavy rain, authorities have normally been able to open at least one lay – with one-way alternating traffic flow – in quick order.

The bushfire – which the RFS said was arson due to the multiple ignition spots – was a different beast.

The blaze was first detected early on the Sunday, and Patsy said this also impacted on the second and final day of the Dorrigo Show.

“There no doubt would have been a number of people who had intended to come up and would have changed their mind,” she said.

The incident has given Dorrigo Chamber of Commerce fresh impetus to push for an upgrade to the back road and only alternative route between the Plateau and the Coffs Coast.

“We will continue to push for an upgrade of the road out through Cascade so that it could safely handle the traffic,” Patsy said.

The Waterfall Way fire burned through 90 hectares. Extremely dry conditions and warm weather lead to the fire expand in size. A Large Air Tanker (LAT) was brought into the Bellinger Valley to help the RFS battle the blaze.