For more local news and photos grab a copy of the Bay Post or Moruya Examiner.

Property owner Ben Housiaux lives next door and was first on the scene when the shop went up in smoke.

“I heard a couple of faint noises and got up to have a quick look,” he said.

“At that point the fire was only in the front but it had gone up an inside wall and smoke and flames were coming out.”

Mr Housiaux, who had recently joined the village Rural Fire Service, rang emergency services before heading to the fire shed to bring down one of the trucks.

“It only took five minutes but it felt like an hour,” Mr Housiaux said.

By this stage a group of more than 20 people had gathered.

“I knew there was a 185-litre gas cylinder around the back that had to be my focus,” Mr Housiaux said.

However flames engulfed the building within 20 minutes, taking with them 80 years of history.

According to a photograph, which hangs in the Nelligen Mechanic’s Institute, the store was built around 1930 on the site of the original Steampacket Hotel, which burnt down in a fire in 1924.

Mr Housiaux bought the business in 1994 and the land in 1999.

“When I think about it, my mouth goes dry,” he said.

“It’s the first time I’ve been to a fire.”

The long-time Nelligen resident said his RFS training helped him to focus.

“I knew the first thing was turning off the power because you can’t put water on an electrical fire,” he said. “But my training is bushfire, which is very different.”

The electrical leads had fallen to the ground by the time three fire trucks arrived at the scene.

“I don’t even remember the roof falling in, yet I know I was there for it,” Mr Housiaux said.

“The whole store was on the ground within the hour.”

Despite this, it took fire fighters a further four hours to completely snuff out the embers.

Batemans Bay Police Detective Sergeant John Robertson said yesterday that a brief would be prepared for the coroner but he denied any suggestion of foul play.

“Not at this stage,” he said.

“All the parties will need to be spoken to and a brief for the coroner’s investigation will be prepared but that’s basically it, nothing exciting.”

The fire has broken the hearts of Nelligen residents who say the store was “iconic” to the village.

Dot Colebrook, who worked at the store for 20 years, was overcome by emotion.

“It’s just devastating,” she said.

“I can remember going there when we were little. I feel very emotional about the whole thing ... I just hope it will be rebuilt, although it will never be the same.”

Her mother, Betty Heycox, said the store was one of five historical Nelligen buildings and described the loss as “terrible”.

“I feel so sad because I’ve dealt there since 1948,” she said. “It was one of our history pieces.”

Mr Housiaux said he would like to clear the site by Anzac Day.

“I have insurance for the building and to remove the debris,” he said.

“I would like to see the process of getting a new store started as fast as possible. Something in

a similar style, in keeping with the tradition and architectural heritage of the village.”

For now, Mr Housiaux says it is important to focus on the positives.

“I have to think like that,” he said.

“Nobody was hurt or injured and no one else lost their

property.

“I’m humbled by the support I received at an ungodly hour of the morning. Everybody in this village has been so generous to me, I don’t think there is a single person who hasn’t come to see me.”