Gold Coast fires: residents ignore ban as BOM forecasts no rain for next eight days

Gold Coast rural fire brigades have attended three fires in the space of 45 minutes as residents ignored a citywide fire ban.

GOLD Coast rural fire brigades attended three fires in the space of 45 minutes on Saturday night as residents ignored a citywide fire ban.

A spokesman for the Coomera Valley Rural Fire Brigade said it attended a call-out at Pimpama after sparks flying from a lawnmower caused an accidental fire.

He said other rural fire brigades separately attended two deliberately-lit fires at Clagiraba and Willowvale.

The former was a bonfire in a paddock and the latter a campfire.

A bonfire along a beach in Burleigh also got out of hand, leading to a 30m by 15m blaze that took firefighters 45 minutes to extinguish.

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Police Deputy Commissioner Steve Gollschewski has warned people flouting the fire ban that police will “relentlessly” pursue them. (AAP Image/Steve Pohlner)

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The Gold Coast region is currently under a total fire ban, recently extended to 11.59pm next Sunday. The ban also applies to the Ipswich, Somerset, Scenic Rim, Lockyer Valley and Logan local government areas.

Police deputy commissioner Steve Gollschewski used a press conference to lash out at people flouting the ban. He said police are investigating a fire deliberately lit at Pimpama that “put lives at risk”.

“This is extremely disappointing,” he said.

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A fire ban for the Scenic Rim and Gold Coast local government areas has been extended through to Sunday.

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“The people who do these sort of acts tie up police resources for the investigations for offences that I might add are very serious and can include up to life imprisonment,” he said.

“The message to people out there that want do these things is we will be relentless in trying to (find these people) so just do not do it. Don’t put yourself or the community at risk.”

Bureau of Meteorology state manager Bruce Gunn said the winds will remain strong today before easing by Tuesday.

“The actual easing of the fire dangers … is not really until Tuesday for the southeast of the state … and as humidity starts to increase across the coastal strip.”

He said there was no prospect of rain in the next eight days.

“The seasonal outlook is rather bleak for getting anything above average rainfall.

“Add to that the higher than average temperatures we are expecting just exacerbates the current situation.

“It is a matter of staying vigilant and listening to warnings from emergency services.”