Tina Hag was home alone with her four children — her youngest just two months old — as a bushfire rapidly approached the northern New South Wales town of Rappville on Tuesday night.

Key points: Resident Robert Collier says he expects many people to leave Rappville because of the fire

Resident Robert Collier says he expects many people to leave Rappville because of the fire The Mayor said the fire destroyed the town hall, numerous properties and 20,000 hectares of grazing land

The Mayor said the fire destroyed the town hall, numerous properties and 20,000 hectares of grazing land Asbestos, fallen trees and powerlines all pose a risk to recovery efforts

The family managed to escape their rental home with only a laptop before the house burned to the ground.

Ms Hag and her partner Robert Collier returned to the property with their children on Wednesday, still in shock about how quickly the fire came through.

"You just don't think that it's going to happen to you," Ms Hag said.

"It just goes to show you how quickly it can turn.

"There are no words. I'm so sad for everybody who's lost their properties."

Tina Hag, her partner Robert Collier, and their children Jesse, 6, Villiam, 4, Nora, 2, Edward, 2 months. ( ABC News: Bellinda Kontominas )

Mr Collier said the family saw their home ablaze on the news.

"Pretty much only my Gemini [car] survived — that's about it," he said.

"We managed to take the laptop with us with all the family photos. That's the most important thing that you get — the memory stuff."

Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Watch Duration: 20 seconds 20 s Homes burn through the night in Rappville

Mr Collier said he expected several people to move away from the town as a result of the fire.

"I think you won't see as many kids at the school now," he said.

"Certainly things will change around here."

The remains of Rappville Town Hall. ( ABC News: Bellinda Kontominas )

As the family sifted through the remains of their home, engineers assessed nearby structures, including the smouldering twisted metal where the adjoining town hall used to be.

Fifteen homes have been destroyed or damaged in the Rappville area, according to the Rural Fire Service (RFS).

The RFS said it could be several days before all residents were allowed to return to the town.

Fallen trees and power lines still pose a risk, as does asbestos.

It could be days before all residents can return home. ( ABC News: Elloise Farrow-Smith )

Richmond Valley Mayor Robert Mustow said the community was facing "challenging times".

"The community hall is gone. The hotel was saved, they tell me it was caught on fire a couple of times but it was extinguished," he said.

"For the farmers, if they have stock left, there's going to be no feed.

"20,000 hectares — that's a lot of grazing land lost.

"The timber side of things, a lot of that will never come back."

Firefighters were able to save Rappville's pub, which nearly burnt down. ( ABC News: Bellinda Kontominas )

Community comes together to help each other

As the fire approached, many residents who had left it too late to leave took shelter at Rappville Primary School.

Principal Kathleen Collis said about 50 residents, including some livestock, used the building.

"We had goats who took up residence in the boy's toilets, we had dogs in our staff room, I think there were sheep as well," she said.

A Rappville playground narrowly avoided going up in flames. ( ABC News: Bellinda Kontominas )

One resident, who wished only to be known as Tanya, said she and her partner were holed up at the school until midnight, as RFS volunteers worked hard to keep the fire at bay.

"Everyone had fire extinguishers and were putting out all the spot fires," she said.

"The firies were doing the major fire hazards and … I was on the phone to Mum and I was saying 'This house is gone, that house is gone, another block has gone'."

The school's oval continues to smoulder, showing just how close the fire came.

Children's bikes have been left charred. ( ABC News: Bellinda Kontominas )

Across the road from the school, another property sits in ruins.

It belongs to John Duncan, whose daughter contacted the RFS via Twitter, allowing firefighters to rescue her father and his partner just in time.

Mr Duncan initially hid in his shed believing he would be safe from the flames, but both his home and shed were decimated by the fire.

He escaped with nothing — not even his walking stick.

Ms Hag and Mr Collier, meanwhile, said they felt lucky despite the loss of their home.

"The town has really come together," Ms Hag said.

"Everybody's helping out, we've got heaps of things like nappies, clothes and everybody is just so helpful and loving — it's always been like that."