A man who braved flames, searing temperatures and thick black smoke to pull two relatives from a burning car has been hailed a hero in the wake of Monday evening's fiery tanker explosion near Batemans Bay.
The unnamed man was related to the two girls, Makeely Bridge, 11, and her sister, Jordon, 13, who died when the tanker slammed into three vehicles.
He suffered first- and second-degree burns to his hands as he and other relatives desperately tried to rescue the girls and their parents, David and Debbie, trapped inside their vehicle.
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The man managed to drag the two adults from the car despite it being upturned.
"He burnt his hands trying to release the children from the car and get their parents out," said Shoalhaven district ambulance manager Wayne Dunlop.
But he was unable to get to the two girls in the back seat.
Shoalhaven police local area commander Superintendent Wayne Starling painted the terrifying scene that confronted the man as he tried to drag his relatives away from danger and death.
"It was an inferno," Mr Starling said.
"There was extreme heat, there was black smoke making it difficult to breathe ... the rig and the Subaru were engulfed in flames."
The two adults dragged from the car were conscious when emergency crews arrived at the scene.
They were airlifted to burns units in Concord and Royal North Shore hospitals, where they both remain in a critical condition.
The extended family had been returning home from holidaying in Victoria; the relatives were following the Bridges' vehicle.
Mr Starling paid tribute to the man and his actions.
"Under very tragic circumstances heroes do come out," he said. "But it's just horrific for all involved."
Mr Dunlop said the Bridges faced a difficult time ahead.
He said the couple were both in critical condition and had sustained burns to 80 per cent of their bodies.
"It's very critical for the next few weeks. If they survive they're facing repeated surgeries and ongoing skin grafts," Mr Dunlop said.
Mr Starling said that what caused the driver, David Carolan, to cross to the wrong side of the road remained "the million-dollar question".
He said police could not confirm the family's names as formally identifying the two children and the tanker driver could take several days.
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