Bushfire burning at the Grampians, emergency warning issued for residents to leave immediately
A raging bushfire at the Grampians National Park remains out of control, with neighbouring communities warned to stay on high alert over coming days as hot, dry conditions fan the flames.
Victoria
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Scores of firefighters are battling an out-of-control bushfire at the Grampians National Park that has burnt more than 10,100ha.
With hot, dry conditions set to continue into Saturday, communities have been warned to be ready for the fire in case it “punches out of the Grampians.”
Vic Emergency downgraded an emergency warning for an area taking in the Grampians, Mirranatwa, Victoria Valley, Jimmy Creek to a “Watch and Act” just after 8.30am Thursday, with people being urged to prepare to leave.
By Friday the bushfire had covered more than 10,100ha, with emergency services saying it "could burn for weeks" given its difficult position.
Residents of Mafeking and Watgania were told to leave immediately on Friday afternoon and head towards Willaura as the blaze moved east and then toward Mount William, covering skies above western Victoria - including part of Melbourne - with smoke and prompting emergency services to warn about air quality.
A relief centre was opened at Alexandra Oval Community Centre in Ararat.
“There is a bushfire in the Grampians National Park - Yarram Gap Road that is not yet under control," the evacuation warning read.
"The bushfire is travelling from the Grampians National Park in a northeasterly direction towards Mt William.
"The fire activity has increased under the southwesterly wind change."
At an information session on Thursday in Willaura, incident controller Mark Gunning said the fire was burning in some fairly inaccessible areas and was exacerbated by two years of deficient rainfall in western Victoria.
“This is a really serious fire,” he said.
“As the fire dangers increase over Friday, Saturday these communities need to be ready for fire in case it punches out of the Grampians.”
Mr Gunning said the blaze was expected to continue north on Friday and Saturday, with a southerly change on Friday evening.
He said the flames had reached private land on the east and west side, with reports of damaged outbuildings and one house that firefighters successfully helped a resident protect on Wednesday night.
There have been no reported injuries.
Fifth generation farmer Geoff Gellert, who attended the Willaura meeting, said he was concerned about the fire because of fuel that recently blew into his property from a nearby swamp.
“I thought I was in a really good condition because our paddocks were bare,” he said.
“But on Monday we had a tremendous wind from the north and we’re alongside the Mount William swamp.
“It blew all the fairy grass into our property and around the house.
“There was a door we couldn’t get out of ... it blew so much fairy grass against the house.”
Photos show piles of the native plant massed high against parts of Mr Gellert’s home and fence line.
“So now we’re contending with that and it’s really volatile,” he said.
“It burns like crazy
“I’ve gone from thinking, we’re safe, to oh, man.”
Mr Gellert’s worries stem from experience.
He grew emotional as he recalled fires in 2006, when he lost livestock on a turn of the wind.
“It just comes back to you,” he said.
“All of a sudden we had a wind change and it just cleaned them all up.
“We spent the following day after the ’06 fire shooting and burying sheep like so many others.
“For farmers whose job it is to look after them, it is really gut-wrenching.”
Mr Gellert said there should be more cool burning done in the area to reduce fuel loads.
On Thursday afternoon there were 200 firefighters from the CFA and Forest Fire Management Victoria battling the bushfire alongside what Mr Gunning called “the vast majority” of the state’s aerial firefighting fleets.
That included 13 bombers and observers, nine helicopters, two tankers going back and forth from Avalon, and several dozers and graders.
CFA Willaura brigade captain Robert Guttler on Thursday helped lead five tankers, five private fire trucks, and multiple motorbikes in a controlled roadside burn southeast of the main fire ground, near Bornes Hill, to prepare for possible worsening conditions.
“We normally do this every year,” he said.
“Around Willaura we have done these ones already.
“We just hadn’t got to Bornes Hill side yet because of harvest and manpower.”
He said if the wind turned on Friday, the road could be used as as fallback point.
“If it is trickling out in grassland then hopefully if it’s going slow enough we can pull it up,” he said.
Wednesday warnings: Leave now
Residents in Mirranatwa, the Grampians and Victoria Valley were on Wednesday warned to leave immediately before it was too late.
Drivers approaching Dunkeld from the west on Wednesday afternoon were met with a large grey cloud above the Grampians in an otherwise clear sky, with the ranges smouldering on the horizon.
It’s understood there were about half a dozen homes in the fire’s path when it made its way over a ridge about 2pm.
Campgrounds have been evacuated in the holiday hotspot.
Yarram Gap Rd remained closed in both directions from Grampians Rd in Mafeking to Moyston-Willaura Rd in Willaura on Thursday morning.
Victoria Valley Rd is also closed in both directions between Dunkeld and Mirranatwa.
A relief centre has been opened for those seeking assistance at Sterling Place Community Centre, 14 Sterling Place, Dunkeld.
A couple staying in Dunkeld in order to attend a wedding in the Mount William area on Thursday were unperturbed by the smoke.
They said they had been asked to download the Vic Emergency app, but so far their plans stood.
Up-to-date information on the safest exit routes is available online at emergency.vic.gov.au or the VicEmergency hotline on 1800 226 226.
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