It’s an image which captured nature at its worst and human bravery at its best.
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But NSW Police Rescue Senior Constable Gary Storey says he was just “doing his job” when he rescued eight-year-old Ashlie Hawkes from rising flood waters near her Towradgi home.
The young girl is one of many people Mr Storey saved during the devastating 1998 floods.
But 20 years on Mr Storey still can’t erase from his memory the “harrowing” events of August 17, 1998.
“We were lucky really that there was only one fatality, and that was at Bellambi,” the now retired police officer said.
“It was just lucky that no one else lost their lives, that’s the main thing, We were very lucky. It could have been much worse.”
Mr Storey speaks from personal experience. He was part of the crew which pulled Stuart Diver from the Thredbo landslide disaster in 1997, which resulted in 18 deaths.
But the “nightmare” that is the floods of 1998 hit closer to home for the 58-year-old from Tarrawanna.
“It was a bit of a nightmare really because August started with the rains and it didn't stop. It was relentless,” Mr Storey said.
“I was actually off duty on the day in question but I knew something wasn’t right. I was mentally preparing to head back even before I called in and they said get your ass back to work.
“I just happened to be near the area of Blue Divers Creek.
“I just managed to get home and get changed and the next minute I was up to my neck in water.. ..because it just came all of a sudden.
“It was in that big torrential downpour that everyone was stuck in.”
Mr Storey was “stuck between Blue Divers Creek and Fairy Creek”.
“There were police everywhere dealing with their own little scenarios,” he said.
“There were other police stuck up on the mountain. I could not even get to them because there was a torrent of water coming down Mount Ousley.
“It wasn’t just the water which was dangerous but there was debris, trees, washing machines and even cars.
“Near the Frat two containers washed out underneath a railway line. That’s how strong the current was. Looking back at it now, it was very dangerous what we did.
“But at the time, if someone was in trouble you just got in and tried to help them. There was no ifs or buts, I didn’t flinch it just came automatically to me. It was my job.”
While Mr Storey isn’t sure what happened to the girl he rescued, to this day he shares a “special bond” with Mercury photgrapher Sylvia Liber.
Liber said capturing the rescue was almost as dramatic as the rescue itself.
“I scaled two fences and walked waist-deep in flooded waters to get to the heart of the action”.
Read more: Flood proofing: a battle we may never win
Agron Latifi
Wollongong born and bred. I love reporting about the Illawarra region and have been doing it for more than 20 years. I've moved into sport recently after covering the education round for the last five plus years for the Illawarra Mercury. It's been a great pleasure.
Wollongong born and bred. I love reporting about the Illawarra region and have been doing it for more than 20 years. I've moved into sport recently after covering the education round for the last five plus years for the Illawarra Mercury. It's been a great pleasure.
