Outback mystery as cattle station yards spontaneously combust

A TERRITORY cattle farming family have been left scratching their heads after a mysterious case of ‘spontaneous combustion’

A REMOTE Territory cattle farming family have been left scratching their heads after a mysterious case of “spontaneous combustion” emerged in the station’s cattle yards.

The owner of Mt Denison Station — north east of Yuendumu, about 300km outside Alice Springs — Dianne Martin said fires began popping up seemingly from nowhere throughout the property last week.

“The boys went down to the yards at the end of last week and there was just a fire burning in a perfect circle inside the yard, there had been no lightning or anything and nobody had started it,” she said.

“So we let it burn for a while and it just burnt in the circle and then we put it out later that day, or thought we had, and then the next morning more little fires had just started up out from it and they continued popping up and then they’ve joined together.”

A fire has mysteriously started at the Mt Denison Cattle Station near Alice Springs. Picture: Supplied

Ms Martin said she had not been able to get official confirmation of what caused the fires but ruling out some kind of outback magic, she believed it was down to spontaneous combustion.

“It’s burning all the decomposed manure and stuff on top but the ground itself under that sort of top layer is burning and extremely hot,” she said.

“I would say it would have to be spontaneous combustion but it’s sort of funny, we’ve had days of well over 40 degrees and when it was only mid-30s it started up and there’s been no rain or anything for months and months.”

It is hot in Central Australia but the ground is not normally burning like this. Picture: Supplied

Ms Martin said the temperature of the flare-up had risen to hot enough to cook a Sunday roast and the family had taken photos of eggs frying on the ground.

“My son measured it with a sugar thermometer which melted at 200 degrees and then he used a digital laser one, which we don’t know if it’s really accurate, and it measured 350 degrees,” she said.

Like the cattle, the ground has now been branded. Picture: Supplied

Bushfires NT assistant director of operations, Joshua Fischer, confirmed the mysterious fire was a case of spontaneous combustion.

“Reviewing the footage and discussions had with Mt Denison Station management is that it is spontaneous combustion of the cow manure that over many years has broken down into organic material and been compacted in the yards,” he said.

“For the spontaneous combustion to occur I’m thinking that if there is a stock water trough in the yard, there may be a small leak associated to that which has provided the moisture, then combined with the record heatwave, has ignited under the ground and burnt before popping out on the surface.”

Originally published as Outback mystery as cattle station yards spontaneously combust