Bushfire danger period starts in a week in northern NSW

At least 10 warning letters have been issued to landholders after fires escaped, mainly from burning piles of timber,  in the New England area alone. In almost all instances neighbours and fire authorities were not told of the proposed burns.

In all there were 142 hazard reduction burns in NSW on properties in the last week that ended up getting out of control.

The fire season is already shaping as a bad one from fire statistics this winter. In all, there were 525 fires reported in NSW in the seven days to last Sunday, compared to 276 for the same time last year. One of the fires even involved a watch and act warning near Port Macquarie.

With most of NSW experiencing less than half its annual rainfall so far this year, fire authorities are preparing for a tough fire season ahead. Already they have started bushfire danger periods from August 1 in 10 local government areas, although the fire season normally starts in northern NSW at this time, where conditions traditionally get windy in August.

 The Rural Fire Service is urging landholders to consult the Bureau of Meteorology website before starting fires.

RFS acting New England manager Liz Ferris said although many of the escaped fires started on a calm day, landholders had not seen the forecast for strong winds in the following days. The RFS in New England has already issued five warning letters to  landholders who did not inform neighbours of burns with another set of warning letters to go out in the next week. Luckily most of the burns stayed on the farms where they were lit.

“It is important that fire controllers are told about intended burns as well as neighbours so that volunteer firefighters time is not wasted if fires get out of control.”

She said it was a good time of year to burn piles, but farmers just need to consult the BOM website, to make sure conditions were suitable.

The NSW RFS announced 10 Local Government Areas (LGAs) will commence the Bush Fire Danger Period (BFDP) on Wednesday 1 August 2018, due to prevailing dry conditions.

NSW RFS Deputy Commissioner Rob Rogers said the 10 LGAs that will enter the BFDP on 1 August 2018 are Armidale Regional, Clarence Valley, Glen Innes Severn, Inverell, Kyogle, Lismore, Richmond Valley, Tenterfield, Uralla and Walcha.

Deputy Commissioner Rogers said a number of factors, including local fuel conditions, are considered before declaring a variation to the statutory BFDP that commences on 1 October 2018.

“Areas in the north of the state are experiencing extremely dry conditions and it is a worrying sign, especially given we have only received half of average rainfall during winter and no meaningful rain is forecast in the next few months,” Deputy Commissioner Rogers said.

“Conditions along the coast and especially west of the ranges are drier than average, which is of great concern leading into the bush fire season, especially given firefighters have attended 525 bush or grass fires in the past week alone, compared to 276 for the same period last year.”

During the BFDP, land owners and managers are required to obtain a Fire Permit from their local Fire Control Centre before lighting any fires, including hazard reduction burns.

Minister for Emergency Services Troy Grant said that despite current cold temperatures across the state, now is the time for residents and land managers to start preparing for the threat of bush fire.

“We saw with the Holsworthy fire in April, as well as a Watch and Act fire west of Port Macquarie just last week, that bush fires can strike out of season and it is vitally important to be prepared,” Mr Grant said.

“This means doing really simple things like cleaning your gutters, removing combustibles from your yard, ensuring hoses can reach all corners of your property and completing or updating your bush fire survival plan, so you and your family know what you will do in the event of a bush fire.”

“I encourage households to update or create a bush fire survival plan and make sure the whole family knows what to do when faced with a fire. It could save your lives.”

The NSW Rural Fire Service (NSW RFS) is urging land managers and landholders undertaking hazard reduction to carefully consider current weather conditions after firefighters across the state had to be called to contain and extinguish escaped hazard reduction burns during the past week.

NSW RFS Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons said hundreds of firefighters have attended a number of escaped hazard reduction or pile burns in areas including the Bega Valley, Mid North Coast, New England, Northern Rivers, Northern Tablelands, Wingecarribee and Wollondilly.

In the past fortnight, NSW RFS crews have been called to at least 142 reported escaped or illegal landowner burns across the state.

“Given the dry and windy conditions are forecast to continue over many parts of the state for the next few days, it is vital that landholders only light up when it is safe to do so,” Commissioner Fitzsimmons said.

“We have also received many reports about people lighting up without providing proper notifications and carelessly allowing burns to escape.”

Landholders who fail to notify firefighters and neighbours face fines of up to $5,500 and/or 12 months jail while escaped fires attract penalties of up to $110,000 and/or five years prison.

“The dryness of the landscape and the lack of rain is worrying, especially when you take into account the number of hazard reduction burns that had to be postponed during the past two years due to unfavourable weather conditions,” Commissioner Fitzsimmons said.