Anguish, courage in fire's path

Desperate residents were confronted with the awful reality yesterday that the fire which ravaged the Perth Hills on Sunday had destroyed 52 homes.

Fire authorities still fighting the blaze warned that the devastated area was still not safe but admitted that though the damage was awful, it could have been far worse.

At one stage they feared the "unassailable" fire front would raze the entire Mt Helena community.

Fire and Emergency Services Commissioner Wayne Gregson said the efforts of 385 firefighters and a timely wind change had saved more than 425 homes in Mt Helena, which DFES fire modelling had showed was under serious threat.

"It is very grave that we have lost so many houses and I really feel for those people, but it could have been substantially worse," Mr Gregson said. "The intensity of the fire was such that it was unassailable from the front."

The inferno ripped through more than 385ha after a falling power pole sparked the destructive blaze on Sunday morning.

Ron Shaw, a retired City of Swan employee, died during the fires.

An owner of the Parkerville property where the fire started expressed his regret yesterday that he was unable to stop it from spreading.

Residents whose homes have been destroyed have been notified and, while most will be escorted through the fire zone today, some have already returned to their homes.

Natasha Freeman-Smith went back to the Traylen Road home in Parkerville she shares with daughter Alana, 11, and partner Brett yesterday to discover it had been destroyed.

"There's nothing left, it's all gone. We've lost everything," she said as she fought back tears.

At a community briefing yesterday afternoon, DFES incident controller Stuart Wade read out a devastating rollcall of the streets where homes had been destroyed.

The worst-affected streets were Grenville Road, where eight homes were lost, Richardson Road, where seven homes were destroyed, and Matthews Way, which also lost seven homes.

Supt Wade said he understood residents' frustration but he urged them not to return without permission.

He said one resident had burns and had to be rescued by firefighters, using up precious resources, after trying to make his way to his property.

Mr Gregson said there had been catastrophic fire conditions across most of WA at the weekend and firefighters had battled 200 fires, with up to six considered major incidents.

There were fears yesterday that four people were missing in the fire zone but they were found safe.

Last night, the Parkerville blaze was contained but gusty winds prevented firefighters from keeping it under control.

Mr Gregson said it was likely there would be a review of the response to the incident but he believed emergency services had done what they could.

Emergency Services Minister Joe Francis admitted he was frustrated that some property owners appeared to be unprepared for the bushfire threat, despite months of warnings and a big advertising campaign.

Acting Premier Kim Hames thanked firefighters, police, Western Power and other emergency responders for their efforts.