Bushfires NT flag suspicious fires at locations including Berry Springs, Dundee, Acacia River

Fires across Darwin and the surrounding region will be examined closely, with a senior chief bemoaning the spattering of blazes keeping fireys occupied.

A large fire adjacent to the Stuart Highway, immediately north of the Elizabeth River Bridge. Picture: Bushfires NT.

Fires across Darwin and the surrounding region are being treated as suspicious, with a senior chief urging Territorians to report dubious activity.

The request comes after Darwin endured a particularly smokey week, with consecutive days of fires raging across bushland and suburban parkland.

Bushfires NT chief control officer Tony Fuller confirmed while there had been a “couple of planned burns” in the past week, most fires in and around Darwin appeared deliberately lit.

“They appear deliberately lit, there was a fairly intense fire at Berry Springs on Wednesday that we believe was suspiciously lit, and we also had one at Dundee,” he said.

“Elizabeth River had a suspicious fire too, another at Acacia Hills.”

Bushfires NT have been kept particularly busy over the past week. Picture: Bushfires NT.

Such was the ferocity of one fire that four water bombers and a pair of helicopters were required to quash the threat.

“There would have been 20-odd crews on the ground there, plus their assets.”

In May, Mr Fuller made a public plea for Territorians to oust individuals unlawfully igniting fires after the Territory experienced one of its worst fire seasons in years, recording 904 wildfires – more than double the number of wildfires in 2022.

The identification of 80 suspicious fires led to NT Police launching an extensive investigation, with a 37 year-old man arrested and charged with 18 counts of causing a bushfire.

A fire raging near the Elizabeth River. Picture: Bushfires NT.

This season, Mr Fuller asked Territorians to be careful amid the highly flammable, Dry season landscape.

“The weather is changing, we’ve noticed that recently it’s starting to heat up,” he said.

“The fuel loads mean that it’s extremely dry and extremely flammable, so just take care and we expect in the not-too-distance future that we’ll be declaring fire bans.”

With roads and tracks covered with thick smoke, Mr Fuller also requested drivers to slow down and use their headlights when passing through smoke.

“We haven’t had an accident, but drivers have been going too quick through the smoke, not seeing our responders on the roadside.”