Binna Burra fire may be deliberate: police

Blaze that destroyed homes and an iconic tourist attraction may have been deliberate.

Binna Burra Lodge's Steve Noakes has been left devastated by the destruction of the once picturesque lodge which now lies in ruins. Picture: NIGEL HALLETT

A bushfire that erased almost a dozen homes in southeast Queensland and went on to destroy the historic Binna Burra lodge may have been deliberately lit.

Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll has confirmed an investigation into the Sarabah fire is underway as police treat it and a number of others across the state as suspicious.

“We do have concerns about the start of this fire,” she told reporters during a tour of burnt-out properties in Beechmont on Sunday.

“We will be relentless in pursuing whoever it is that lit the fire, not only here, but across the state.”

Fires in Scenic Rim are burning in remote land down in the valleys. The terrain has made it difficult for authorities to fight that fire but it is where they want to keep it contained.

They have assured locals they have a considerable number of crews and aircraft to keep the community safe if it flares when temperatures soar early next week.

The remains of Binna Burra Lodge. Picture: NIGEL HALLETT

The Sarabah fire is still of the most concern to authorities because it is the biggest, a Queensland Fire and Emergency Services spokeswoman says. “The fires that are over the ridge here ... at the moment are contained, but we do know that conditions are going to change on Tuesday and Wednesday and we need to be ready for that,” Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said on Sunday. “Some people here have lost their worldly possessions but they haven’t lost their lives.

“They’ll be able to rebuild, and we’ll help them rebuild.” She is asking Queenslanders to give generously to a bushfire appeal to support those who lost everything and says her government is looking at the viability of getting its own Large Air Tanker to help fight future fires. About 50 blazes are still burning in tinderbox conditions across Queensland. Crews from Victoria, South Australia, Western Australia and New Zealand are lending a hand to fight blazes that have razed homes, businesses and more than 55,000 hectares of land.

However, the fire danger remains high ahead of deteriorating firefighting conditions forecast to arrive early next week.

Binna Burra before the fire.

“The fire conditions will remain for us for some time,” Acting Fire Commissioner Mike Wassing said.

The 10-day emergency has seen some 1200 bushfires burning across the state, with more than 600 community warnings issued in the past two weeks. Officials have warned some fires could burn for months because the ground is bone-dry and there is no significant rain in sight.

The Ballandean blaze, south of Stanthorpe, continues to burn within containment lines and there is currently no threat to property.

AAP