Gold Coast hinterland bushfire fury: ‘My ventolin is getting a workout’

Choked-up residents are venting after weeks of burn-offs which have caused smoke to blanket many parts of the Gold Coast. Here’s when the latest burns are scheduled to end.

CHOKED-UP residents are venting after weeks of burn-offs in the Gold Coast hinterland, sparking a call for better co-ordination and communication by fire authorities.

Many young families have children battling breathing issues due to the flu, while others on tight incomes face mounting electricity bills after using their dryers for a month because they are unable to hang washing on the line.

A bushfire tears through Maudsland, blowing smoke over Pacific Pines on the Gold Coast. Photo: Cam Neville / Aurora Photos

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Nerang and Pacific-Pines based councillor Peter Young is frustrated after raising the issue in the past fortnight at council, and today is organising a meeting with council officers to improve notifications between the State and local authorities.

This follows a hazard reduction burn by the State, after weeks of council-organised burn-offs, where residents were offered little warning.

Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service on its website says a planned burn in the northwest section of the Nerang National Park and Nerang State Forest will continue through to Friday.

Smoke was expected to impact on the suburbs of Nerang, Mount Nathan, Clagiraba, Maudsland and Pacific Pines.

A Maudsland fire in January this year. Photo: Cam Neville / Aurora Photos.

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Nerang and Pacific Pines residents have vented on Cr Young’s Facebook page after fire crews conducted hazard reduction burns for several days late last month, leaving a smoke haze across much of the north of the city.

Cr Young at a full council meeting on Wednesday again raised the issue of better co-ordination and notification between agencies.

“I just want to raise that today because there have been some fires affecting Pacific Pines and Nerang communities in the last couple of weeks,” he said.

“These are being undertaken by the State in the national forest. There’s been no notifications provided, certainly not through (fire management) dashboard, I wanted to assure the community that that is being addressed.

“I’m meeting tomorrow to seek to have better notification processes. There have been people affected by constant smoke for a couple of weeks now and it really is affecting their health.”

Councillor Peter Young wants better notification of burn-offs for residents. Photo: Jerad Williams.

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Mayor Tom Tate spoke to council chief executive officer Dale Dickson and it was agreed that transport and infrastructure director Alton Twine should work on a solution.

Residents on Cr Young’s Facebook page have complained that “my ventolin is getting a workout”.

A female resident posted: “Seriously this is the longest burn-off. I get it but why the hell are they doing it in this wind?

“I’m so sick of all of the smoke 24/7 as no doubt many others. Can they just hurry up so we can all open our effing (sic) windows and breathe some normal air without filling our lungs with smoke?”

Others complained that a three-week burn-off during flu season was “just stupid”.

Cr Young told residents: “You might want to let your State MP know too. I’m just trying to get some focus on it so things are managed better in the future.”

Residents are being advised by council that there is no choice with some of the localised suburban burn-offs because it will be risky to start them in summer.