NSW bushfires: Why you should prepare for the worst
OMINOUS signs point to the worst bushfire season since 2013, the Rural Fire Service warns. It comes as an emergency warning is issued in West Nowra, where large air tanker Thor has been deployed to assist.
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OMINOUS signs point to the worst bushfire season since 2013, the Rural Fire Service warns.
Hot, dry and windy conditions are predicted for spring, similar to four years ago when fire ripped through the Blue Mountains.
In some ways it is worse, says the RFS, because conditions have worsened weeks earlier than in the 2013 spring.
That year NSW Premier Barry O’Farrell declared a state of emergency for NSW.
RFS Inspector Ben Shepherd said the threat of bushfire loomed largest this season in the council areas: Lithgow, Blue Mountains, Mid-Coast, Warrumbungle, Gilgandra, Mid-Western Regional, Port Macquarie — Hastings, Bathurst, and Oberon.
He said this year the RFS declared the start to the bushfire danger period a month early in some areas such as the Blue Mountains.
“We’ve identified particularly on the coastal areas of NSW and along the ranges an above-normal potential for fires this year,” Insp Shepherd said.
“That is because it’s just been so dry.”
He said the forested areas had not had significant rainfall since June, even March in some areas.
“Whilst there might be some areas that have an above-normal potential fire, anyone who lives close to bushfire-prone land should prepare regardless,” Insp Shepherd added.
“In grassland areas you can have fires and then, depending on the growth throughout the year, you may have the risk again next fire season.
“For forested areas that either had fire activity as a result of a fire itself or fire reduction burns, due to reduced fuel loads it reduces the fire intensities in those areas.”
By way of example, he said forested areas include the Blue Mountains, around the northern beaches, Hornsby, and Sutherland.
“In Penrith and Londonderry you have a mixture of forests and grasslands,” Insp Shepherd said.
IN CONTEXT
IN MID October 2013 wind gusts of up to 100km/h destroyed 194 homes and razed 3600 hectares of bush in the Blue Mountains. Large fires also affected communities in Port Stephens, Central Coast, Hawkesbury and the Southern Highlands.
Last Saturday night winds reached 102km/h at Badgerys Creek, the Bureau of Meteorology said.
The temperatures had reached a record-high for September of 36.4C during the day.
Yet, despite total fire bans in the Greater Sydney NSW Fire Area, RFS volunteers responded to several illegal pile burns in the Badgerys Creek area that night.
Western Sydney and the Upper Hunter hit ‘severe fire danger’ around 4am on Sunday due to strong winds, the RFS said.
The RFS has now attended more than 5200 fires since July 1 — 200 of them at the weekend — with warm, dry conditions to continue.
“It’s over double what we saw last year,” Insp Shepherd said on Friday.
“Sydney is surrounded by bushland and natural parks. They are basically the lungs of Sydney. With that there comes some risks.”
DRONE FOOTAGE OF 2013 NSW BUSHFIRES
WEEKEND CONDITIONS
HOT weather and strong winds whipped up a massive fire front in Wingello at the weekend, where an ‘emergency’ warning was issued.
The weekend’s dry conditions saw fires close The Hume Highway in both directions at Wingello, and strong winds fell trees onto homes and roads, closing Mulgoa Rd, in Wallacia.
Police are investigating three suspicious fires across the Lake Macquarie region.
Between 2.30am and 4am on Saturday, emergency services were called to three separate fires, since extinguished: between the inner city bypass and Lake Street, Windale; between the inner bypass and Willow Road, Gateshead; and between Pacific Highway and Lake Street, Windale.
THOR IN ACTION NEAR WINGELLO
Large Air Tanker Thor in action over the fire near Wingello in NSW southern highlands. Providing valuable support to ground crews. #NSWRFS pic.twitter.com/w7wrTLuBsQ
— NSW RFS (@NSWRFS) September 23, 2017
As at 11am today RFS crews were still fighting 101 blazes, with no threat to homes. Twenty-five of those had yet to be contained.
All fires were at ‘advice’ level, but an emergency warning has since been declared at West Nowra.
“As we go into the afternoon with hot, dry and windy conditions there’s a chance some (alert levels) may be escalated,” Mr Morris warned.
Insp Shepherd stressed that everyone needs to prepare themselves and their property ahead of this bushfire season, to ensure their own safety if a bushfire breaks out in their area.
“(Risk) will sometimes come down to the conditions on the day,” Insp Shepherd said.
“Too often we do see homes ... lost to ember attack.”
■The Greater Sydney NSW Fire Area covers the council areas of:Ashfield, Auburn, Bankstown, The Hills, Blacktown, Blue Mountains, Botany Bay, Burwood, Camden, Campbelltown, Canada Bay, Canterbury, Fairfield, Gosford, Hawkesbury, Holroyd, Hornsby, Hunters Hill, Hurstville, Kogarah, Ku-ring-gai, Lane Cove, Leichhardt, Liverpool, Manly, Marrickville, Mosman, North Sydney, Parramatta, Penrith, Pittwater, Randwick, Rockdale, Ryde, Strathfield, Sutherland, Sydney, Warringah, Waverley, Willoughby, Woollahra, and Wyong.
AIR SUPPORT
MINISTER for Emergency Services Troy Grant this month announced $38 million over four years for the use of firefighting aircraft statewide, including the large air tanker C-130 Hercules ‘Thor’ which can dump 15,000 litres of water or fire retardant at a time.
Deputy Commissioner Rob Rogers said Thor returns, after a two-year state government trial, as one of more than 100 firefighting aircraft available for use during the fire season.
“Some (cranes) will start over the next few weeks,” Insp Shepherd said.
Thor has already been assisting fire crews on the ground, having been deployed to Wingello at the weekend and to Tenterfield on Friday.
“The DC10 will arrive in over a month’s time,” Mr Shepherd said.
HAZARD REDUCTION BURNS
HAZARD reduction burns are slowing down across the state because of continuing dry conditions, Insp Shepherd said.
He said the RFS had conducted “a number more” hazard reductions than this time last year, but their efforts had been hampered by “a wet start to our traditional backburning period” of March.
Insp Shepherd said the RFS was waiting for rain before completing burns in some areas.
“There were some (back burns) postponed in the last few weeks along the beaches, southwest Sydney and the Blue Mountains at larger sites of over 300 hectares,” he said.
The State Government announced $638,741 in funding in July for projects that will enhance bushfire mitigation in NSW, including maintenance works on fire trails ranging from Heid Place Fire Trail in The Hills to SC 1.1 Fire Trail in Campbelltown.
“Work on the fire trails will be ongoing and more funding will be provided by the State Government in the coming months,” Insp Shepherd said.
He said the money would be spent on the upkeep of existing trails and “potentially” new trails.
“It is important because the trail network is essential to us being able to control out-of-control fires,” he said.
WHAT DOES A ‘TOTAL FIRE BAN’ MEAN?
NSW FIRE AREAS
Click on the links to find out which council areas are affected, and today’s fire danger rating:
2. North Coast
8. ACT
10. Central Ranges
11. New England
12. Northern Slopes
13. North Western
16. Southern Slopes
17. Eastern Riverina
20. South Western
FIRE DANGER RATINGS
Fire danger ratings give you an indication of the consequences of a fire if one was to start.
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