While much of Sydney was celebrating Father's Day breakfast, Balmain Town Hall was filled on Sunday morning with people who had their sense of place and certainty shattered.
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Living in a land of drought and flooding rains, cyclones and bushfires, Australians do disaster at a distance well. But it is different when it comes to your street.
Sudden violence had descended on their suburb. It was as if someone had dropped a stone into a pond, and three days after fire destroyed the convenience store and residences on Darling Street, Rozelle, killing three, the ripples continue to spread across the still surface.
NSW police held the town hall meeting to explain what had happened to their suburb.
It also allowed residents to express their fears, anger, sense of community, and gratitude to emergency workers.
Some wanted to know if they were being poisoned by asbestos. One man asked if the explosion was the work of an arsonist or a terrorist. A Darling Street butcher worried about the health ramifications of "stinking meat" in his shop without power.
With part of Darling Street closed until further notice, shopkeepers asked when they would be allowed to re-open or who was guarding their property.
Another man was troubled about the collection of his rubbish on Monday, as his wheelie bins had been requisitioned by emergency teams clearing debris from the explosion.
One woman wondered if Leichhardt Council had thought about providing a bus service to help handicapped and aged residents, as bus stops near the crime scene had been closed. Another woman asked for her nearby home to be inspected for asbestos contamination.
Some were critical of Leichhardt Council's slowness in putting systems in place. Another spoke of being told to phone a number, to find the officer who answered at Glebe police station was unaware it was the designated contact number.
The rattle of ordinary people, struggling to deal with the horror and life interrupted.
Bianka O'Brien, 31, her 12-month-old son, Jude, and 27-year-old Chris Noble were killed in the explosion. The owner of a street-level convenience store, Adeel Khan, remained in intensive care at the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital after being found trapped inside the shop under a fridge.
Di Stevens, of Tali Gallery in Darling Street, said residents were feeling guilty about worrying about the personal cost when others had lost their lives.
"It's not dissimilar to soldiers who return from war and feel guilty about surviving," she said.
"People and businesses in Rozelle are suffering big losses and it's hard to cope with when it comes out of the blue."
Architect Lynette Gurr fled the burning building in her nightclothes, managing to grab a mobile, driver's licence and passport. She was close to tears, telling the meeting she had spent the days since depending on the kindness of friends.
"At least I got my identity," she said. "But as to what's left, I just don't know. And do I want those clothes if they're contaminated?"
Inspector Gary Coffey moved to assuage fears about asbestos contamination.
"Immediately after the explosion, an assessment in terms of asbestos risk was conducted by Hazmat," he told the community meeting.
"They determined that the risk was very low. Asbestos removal is clearly one of the issues we need to manage in terms of the site itself and the demolition of an adjacent building, and tomorrow there will be experts on hand to provide advice to the community in relation to asbestos management."
Leichardt Mayor Darcy Byrne told the meeting that systems would be put in place to help residents this week.
Some residents had not bothered waiting. On Thursday, Cassandra Kilby set up Help for Rozelle Fire Residents Community on Facebook. It has been the main rallying point; many locals have been offered money and accommodation.
