Preparation for fires in New South Wales takes all sorts of forms.
Berambing local Lionel Buckett has nearly completed his own fire bunker in the Blue Mountains — a practice not encouraged by the NSW Rural Fire Service.
A builder and designer, Mr Buckett constructed the walls from concrete and stone, and says they're rated to last for an hour in full flame.
Having lived in the area his whole life, Mr Buckett says he's seen a lot of fires come through, and decided he could never be too prepared.
"We might never need it, but it's a good thing to have, because fire conditions are changing," he said.
The roof is designed to withstand a tree falling on it, while the ventilation should give 20 people 15 minutes of air, allowing enough time for a fire front to pass.
Built with the help of his apprentices Phil Tomkins and Alana Bathgate, Mr Buckett's bunker will have power and water connected.
It also has a sprinkler on the roof and a water supply for refilling fire trucks.
Mr Tomkins says it has been built in stops and starts over a few months, and is now almost complete.
Ms Bathgate built the walls on the ground before they were lifted onto the bunker.
"It looks pretty flash," she says.
Lionel Buckett runs the Wollemi Cabins — a set of cabins, some of them built in caves.
He says the worst fires he saw in the area were about 40 years ago.
"I was about 18 when a catastrophic fire went through this area," he recalls.
"My mother sent me to stay with my grandmother to pull her out of the house if the house caught fire because she wouldn't leave."
