No fire truck could get into a Bentley nature reserve if needed

Former firefighter and Bentley farmer Gordon Serine says high fuel loads and fire trails destroyed by 4WDs could mean another horror bushfire season.

FIRE TRUCK ACCESS: Bentley farmer and former RFS firefighter, Gordon Serone, is concerned that high fuel loads combined with badly damaged fire trails preventing fire truck access at the Bungabbee Nature Reserve may have tragic results if there’s a bushfire.

A Northern Rivers landowner is worried high fuel loads combined with impassable fire trails could be a lethal combination as we head into bushfire season.

Farmer and former Bentley Rural Fire Services firefighter Gordon Serone said there is a massive amount of fallen bark, small branches and leaf litter in the Bungabbee State Forest Nature Reserve at the moment.

If this was ignited, it could burn hot, fast and roar through the landscape, he has warned.

“Locals and I were terrified in 2019 during the fires at Busby’s Flat 20km west of here. The wind brought 30 to 40mm squares of burning materials dropping out of the sky,” he said.

“It’s very fortunate the reserve which is managed by the Forestry Corporation NSW, escaped disaster but it was more luck than good management.

“No fire truck would be able to get in there if there was a fire and I would not recommend it,” Mr Serone said.

Mr Serone said much of the trail degradation was caused by people taking their four-wheel-drive vehicles along the trails which are open to the public.

The former RFS crew leader and training officer said he’s not scaremongering but with the bushfire danger period starting on Wednesday (September 1), people need to be prepared for the worst.

“The last time the forest was on fire was more than 25 years ago,” he said.

“There are 11 dwellings along O’Neill Rd which could be impacted compared with three in 1994, and access for the three residents on the mountain top is down through the forest and there’s about 19 dwellings along Boundary Creek with only one way out.

“It’s all private land which is heavily overgrown, there hasn’t been a fire in Boundary Creek since the 1960s”.

Bentley farmer and former RFS firefighter, Gordon Serone is worried about the high fuel loads combined with badly damaged fire trails could be a dangerous combination if the Bungabbee Nature Reserve catches fire.

Mr Serone said currently forest fuel levels are very high but a high degree of moisture content is preventing ignition.

But once temperatures rise, humidity drops and wind strength increases, it’s a tinderbox.

Bentley farmer and former RFS firefighter, Gordon Serone said the fire trails at the Bungabbee Nature Reserve have been churned up and damaged by 4WD owners and many are now unable to be accessed by fire trucks.

Mr Serone said he is concerned that people who manage the land are unaware of the situation.

But a Forestry Corporation of NSW (FCNSW) spokesman disagreed saying the situation was complicated, and that the land is managed by multi-agencies.

The spokesman said while FCNSW manages Bungabbee State Forest, the Bungabbee Nature Reserve is managed by the National Parks and Wildlife Service.

“Forestry Corporation works with local Bushfire Management Committees to identify and upgrade roads and fire trails that are strategic priorities across the landscape,” the spokesman said.

“This collaborative process ensures that investments in upgrades are targeted to where they will be most effective for firefighting across tenures.”

In northern NSW, Forestry Corporation is currently working to upgrade and maintain the roads and fire trails identified as top priorities by the local Bushfire Management Committee, which does not include any high priority roads or fire trails in Bungabbee State Forest.

The spokesman said over the past 18 months, FCNSW has been repairing many Northern Rivers roads damaged by bushfires in 2019-20,