After the NSW Premier made a Disaster Declaration last Monday, MidCoast Council immediately responded by suspending non-essential services and making its resources available to support emergency services.

General manager Adrian Panuccio released employees who were directly impacted by the fires, to look after their families and protect their property. Other employees were redirected to wherever emergency services required them to be ensuring public safety during road closures, protecting vital infrastructure, working to continue essential water and sewer services or assisting the regions Emergency Operation Centre.

We want to thank the MidCoast community who have responded to official emergency messages and have risen to the challenges posed by the last few days, Mr Panuccio said.

One of our first priorities has been to take water, generators and other essential items to isolated communities which have been hit hard by the fires beginning with the village of Bobin.

Council does ask for patience and understanding as they work hard to return all services to full operation.

Waste collections were disrupted this week due to the fires. Residents are being asked to put bins out as usual - collections are being made across the region over the coming days and all red bins (other than some in rural areas on roads that are impacted by fires) will be collected by the end of Saturday.

Collections will start earlier in the day and continue through Saturday to allow trucks to get through the backlog of collections.

Parts of the region, Rainbow Flat in particular, need new bins and council is working on providing replacements now.

The Taree Waste Management Centre on the Bucketts Way Tinonee is closed. The Tuncurry Waste Management Centre on Midge Orchid Road is open as usual for the use of residents.

The former Masters building at Taree continues to be occupied by the Rural Fire Service as a staging centre and this will continue for as long as required.

Our work as a council has only just begun and we will be supporting the recovery of our community over the coming weeks and months,'' Mr Panuccio explained.

"This is being led by the Office of Emergency Management. As a result we will have staff focused on both the emergency and the recovery over the coming weeks, as well as continuing our usual services.

Anyone impacted by the fires should visit midcoast.nsw.gov.au/bushfirerecovery for helpful information, and a guide on how to receive help.

You can stay updated on Councils website at www.midcoast.nsw.gov.au, or follow us on Facebook. For further fire information, visit www.rfs.nsw.gov.au or download the Fires Near Me app on your phone, so you receive notifications.