Bushfire airtanker on standby as COVID sidelines Vic, NSW volunteer firefighters
A special firefighting aircraft tanker started operating in Queensland today, as the state ramped up for bushfire season following last year’s Black Summer.
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A special firefighting aircraft tanker started operating in Queensland on Monday, as the state ramped up for bushfire season after last year’s Black Summer.
Hundreds of hectares across the southeast have been earmarked as fire hotspots with Boonah, Beaudesert, Esk and Toogoolawah at the top of the list.
Tamborine, parts of Daisy Hill and bush stretching from Logan to Redland are also on the fire radar.
Springbrook was also a hotspot yesterday after firefighters spent the night at the Great Wall and Apple Tree Creek putting out a slow-spreading fire and protecting nearby houses.
Regional manager for the Rural Fire Service in Southeast Queensland Superintendent Alan Gillespie said the specialised aircraft was part of the state’s arsenal brought in after last year’s scourge.
The Dash-8, which will operate as a large aerial water tanker, will be based out of Bundaberg, a location Mr Gillespie said was central and 40 minutes from the major hotspots.
He said COVID-19 restrictions meant the state could not tap into firefighters from down south.
“This season won’t be as bad as last year but with the COVID-19 restrictions, we need to be self-reliant as we won’t be able to call on volunteers and firefighters from Victoria or New South Wales,” he said.
“The forecast is for an average rainfall up until December so we are not facing the detrimental conditions of last year, which was the worst on record and followed the 2018-19 season which was the worst in a decade.”
This week will be the first anniversary of fires that gutted 11 houses at Beechmont, seven in Stanthorpe, and one at Mareeba.
The blaze spread and the following day, the heritage-listed lodge and cabins at Binna Burra Lodge were razed to the ground.
Two days later, a large fire ripped through Peregian Beach on the Sunshine Coast, severely damaging 10 houses.
While volunteer firefighters from Victoria and NSW will have to pass tight quarantining restrictions if they want to cross into Queensland, the Conair Dash-8 cleared customs in Brisbane last week after a trip from Abbotsford in Canada via Oakland, Honolulu, Majuro and Honiara.
The special firefighting aircraft, built in 2011, is owned by Conair and was converted to a fire bomber which can carry 10,000 litres.
It will be used by Bundaberg crews who set a record last year filling 114 plane loads of water and foam on a day in December.