Mr McDonald took a brief tour of the Lone Pine fire ground on Monday when volunteers urged him to back better facilities at Karuah and Medowie.

Karuah broke ranks earlier this year with its request for a new station since the brigade has outgrown the crumbling facility.

Medowie, meanwhile, has already been through four extensions to the original shed and wants the Minister for Emergency Services David Elliott to fund a generator and automated garage doors.

“It was great to hear these requests first hand and I will take these up with the Minister this week,” Mr McDonald said.

The Lone Pine fire burnt through more than 9000 hectares of bush before crews could bring it under control.

While the fire claimed a number of sheds no homes or lives were lost.

“My thanks goes to all the brigades that fought the Port Stephens fires,” Mr McDonald said.

“It is interesting even now they’re still mopping up.”

Medowie RFS ran non-stop shifts for only a day short of a week to not only bring the fire under control but to prevent it flaring again.

“It was only possibly because of our hard working volunteers, some of whom took time off work, while others volunteered before and after work,” captain Andrew Collins said.

One of the volunteers, a 26-year RFS veteran, said the fire surprised even him on the Saturday.

Unlike in other fires where they would have had an hour to fall back and resume the fight it had crossed The Buckets Way in no time and then the Pacific Highway.

“It’s probably been a few years since fire has been through Wallaroo, it was motoring along,” Peter Smith said. “We thought we would have more time.”

Ken Smee from the Karuah brigade told the Examiner in July about a long list of problems from  cracking to flooding and improper facilities for men and women working in close quarters.

“We’ve done everything by the book until now and it’s got us nowhere,” he said. 

“They were saying 2018, now it’s 2020.” 

Port Stephens Council has since positioned a demountable toilet block at the site.