Police hunt Morisset firebugs, investigate whether North Rothbury blaze was suspicious
Lake Macquarie detectives are searching for firebugs believed to have started four fires around the Morisset area.
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POLICE are hunting young arsonists suspected of lighting four fires at the height of the catastrophic conditions near Morisset yesterday.
Lake Macquarie detectives are searching for the firebugs after fire crews battled to extinguish the blazes lit between 4.32pm and 6.24pm.
The blazes were lit near Morisset High School and Morisset Oval.
The first was lit at 4.32pm, followed by further fires at 4.38pm, 5pm and 6.24pm.
Lake Macquarie police district commander Superintendent Danny Sullivan said an active investigation was now underway to find the arsonists.
“It is inexcusable and unacceptable for anyone to light a fire on days like this,’’ Superintendent Sullivan said.
“As local police commander, but more importantly as a local resident of Lake Macquarie, I am extremely thankful for the hard work done by the Rural Fire Service and Fire and Rescue NSW who were quickly on the scene to extinguish the fires.
“I am also thankful police who attended and ensured no further fires were lit.
“Morisset is a strong community and I am sure they join with me in finding who is responsible for these fires.
“As such, I am appealing for any information or anyone who witnessed anything suspicious to contact police.’’
Lake Macquarie MP Greg Piper has also condemned the actions of the firebugs.
“It’s frightening to think that any person of any age would deliberately strike a match on days like yesterday without understanding the catastrophic consequences it could have had,’’ Mr Piper said.
“There are people in the community who will be able to help police in their investigations and I encourage them to come forward.
“On the upside, we had people in the community yesterday who were vigilant and reported the fires immediately, and we had firefighters, police and other emergency services who were able to respond quickly, bravely and effectively.
“They were very well prepared and I thank them again for keeping our communities safe.
“It was an extraordinary effort in extraordinary circumstances.’’
The concerning developments come as Hunter Valley police start investigating whether a blaze which destroyed several properties at North Rothbury were also suspicious.
Fire experts were working with detectives this morning to discover the ignition points at North Rothbury – as well as the blaze which exploded nearby at Greta – to see whether they were started by human intervention.
Police have appealed for any information or witnesses to come forward.
Inspector Joanne Schultz from Singleton Police said investigations were ongoing,
“We are still conducting some investigations we’ve got a crime scene here at the moment to see if there is any physical evidence and we’ll follow that up with some investigators at a later time,” she said.
“We’re now asking if anyone did see anything, if anyone was acting suspiciously or any information at all to contact us at Singleton or Crime Stoppers.”
“there’s public messaging that goes out days before warning people about the dangers of fires and the impact as well.”
“It is always baffling and disappointing for us when these things happen and if it is a deliberately lit fire, we wish to investigate that as thoroughly as we can to locate the person.”
She added that all three Hunter Valley fires were being investigated.
“We’re investigating all of those, they may not be connected but we need to look into each of those and make sure there’s nothing there that is suspicious,” she said.
Meanwhile, an 18-year-old man has been issued with a Court Attendance Notice for fail to comply with total fire ban order, after he allegedly lit a barbecue in his backyard at Fingal Bay.
He will appear in Raymond Terrace Local Court 20 January 2020.