The fire burned into the town and resulted in an urban conflagration that destroyed over 100 structures. Between July 2017 and February 2018 over 11,000 uncontrolled bushfires burnt across New South Wales; with major fires in the Sydney, Shoalhaven/Jervis Bay, Hunter, Mid Coast, Port Stephens, the Pilliga, Southern Tablelands, Mid Western and Tamworth/New England areas. December 2017 was the fifth-warmest December on record. In February 2018 the Minister for Emergency Services, Troy Grant, urged the public to help fire agencies by ensuring they remain prepared for fires. The day of the fire, 18 March 2018, was an extremely hot and windy day, with conditions reaching over and winds gusting to over at the time the fire started. March 18, 2018   March 19, 2018   The NSW Premier, Gladys Berejiklian, Member for Bega, Andrew Constance, Member for Eden-Monaro, Mike Kelly and Prime Minister, Malcolm Turnbull, visited Tathra soon after the fire and met with evacuated people at the Bega Showgrounds. On 26 March 2018 Berejiklian and Constance announced that up to $10 million was available to remove asbestos-contaminated material and to help residents to clean up their properties; with the clean-up operation coordinated by NSW Public Works in conjunction with insurers and the Bega Valley Shire Council. On 29 March Prime Minister Turnbull officially declared the Tathra and Reedy Swamp areas a disaster zone for the purposes of affected residents accessing Australian disaster relief funds. The NSW Government appointed Euan Ferguson as the official Recovery Coordinator and announced that impacted residents could access disaster relief grants to eligible individuals and families whose homes and essential household contents have been damaged or destroyed by a natural disaster; small business were provided access to free independent and confidential business advice; NSW Family and Community Services provided a range of temporary housing support options; and a range of other support services were provided. The Bega Valley Shire Council established a Mayoral Appeal Fund, under the chairmanship of Councillor Kristy McBain, the Mayor; over $1,500,000 has been raised to date. Immediately following the fire, numerous criticisms were raised by Fire and Rescue NSW firefighters through the Fire Brigade Employees Union in relation to the handling of the fire. Of immediate concern was the fact that their assistance had been declined in the early stages of the fire, which they believe cost more houses which could have been saved. Further culminating the issue were claims by RFS Deputy Commissioner Rob Rogers that it would have been "dangerous" for Fire and Rescue NSW firefighters to attend the fire, a claim which was later refuted.