Residents complain of smoke forcing them out of homes during hazard burn on northern beaches

PHOTOS: Residents forced out of their homes by thick smoke and ash have complained to authorities that they were not properly warned about Tuesday’s big bush burn-off at North Curl Curl, on Sydney’s northern beaches.

Bella Wolff (left) and her sister Claudia, with their home in the background, stand on the North Curl Curl headland after the hazard reduction burn-off. Picture: Julian Andrews

• Hazard reduction burns close to North Curl Curl homes

RESIDENTS forced out of their homes by thick smoke and ash have complained to authorities that they were not properly warned about Tuesday’s big bush burn-off at North Curl Curl.

And at least one family is seeking compensation because they were not told about the planned hazard reduction burn and had to send home painters and tilers working on their house.

The Sweekhorsts, in Molong Rd, also said the paint on their two cars was damaged by the searing heat of the headland fire.

Firefighters monitor flames close to a home in North Curl Curl. Picture: David Swift.

Across the road, the Wolff family said choking smoke swirled through their home after NSW Fire & Rescue set fire to the bush at 10.30am.

Josephine Wolff said she and her teenage daughters, Bella, 19, and Claudia, 15, had difficulty breathing and had to leave their house.

The hazard reduction burn came close to houses but firefighters said they had it under control. Picture: David Swift

“It was unbelievable,” Mrs Wolff said. “We closed all the windows and doors, but the smoke kept coming in.

“We couldn’t breathe properly, the place just filled up with thick smoke. We just had to go.

“There were burning leaves and ash falling all over the garden and the house. It’s going to take ages to clean it up.”

A NSW Fire & Rescue firefighter douses smoldering embers with a water sprayer the day after the hazard reduction burn-off.

Mrs Wolff said if the family had been given more notice it would have made plans not to be at home.

Fire & Rescue burned 3.8 hectares of bush in the hazard reduction that it said had been on its books for “several years”, but the specific date was chosen last week.

It said residents living within 200 metres of the prescribed burn were notified by a letter that was sent out and delivered by Northern Beaches Council staff. The burn was also listed on the Hazard Reductions Advisory list on the NSW Rural Fire Service website and the Fires Nears Me app.

A hazard reduction burn-off on the headland came close to the car park at the North Curl Curl Surf Club.

Mrs Wolff said she only found out about the burn-off the day before when she saw a man delivering leaflets.

“But our next door neighbour told me he didn’t get a letter at all,” she said.

“If they had been planning this for years, you’d think they’d give the residents more notice.”

Bella Wolff said she was finding it hard to breathe and her eyes were runny after a southerly wind sent smoke billowing over the family home.

“It was pretty scary, the flames came pretty close and they were very high,” Bella said.

Myriam Sweekhorst said she was not informed about the burn-off.

Her daughter Eva, 18, who is getting over a lung infection, had to leave to avoid the thick smoke.

A facebook photo taken by Curl Curl resident Myriam Sweekhorst from her veranda showing the thick smoke in Molong Rd from the hazard reduction burn-off.

“We did not get any notification whatsoever,” Ms Sweekhorst said. “If I had known, I would not have let my daughter stay at home.

“And we had to send the workmen home who were doing tiling and painting. Now I have to pay more to get them to come back again.

“The wind was in the wrong direction and the smoke blew straight into our house. You couldn’t even see a thing inside.”

Ms Sweekhorst said she was now seeking compensation.

The aftermath of the planned burn-off.

A Fire & Rescue spokesman said the area was identified for hazard reduction in the Northern Beaches Bush Fire Management Committee’s Bushfire Risk Management Plan.

“It was never the plan for the burn to occur with west or northwest winds. The plan ensured firefighters with protection lines were in place between the burn and properties. At no time were properties at risk.

“The specific date for the burn on Tuesday was chosen by expert bushfire officers last week, as the weather forecast provided suitable conditions to undertake the burn safely.”

IN OTHER NEWS