Bushfire in South West ‘under control’ after burning for several days
Dramatic footage has shown bright yellow water bombers filling up in a lake to battle the still burning Olegas Bluff bushfire. SEE VIDEO + FIRE UPDATE >>
Tasmania
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Dramatic video footage has shown yellow water bombers filling their holds with water from a lake as pilots battle the ongoing Olegas Bluff bushfire.
Tasmania Fire Service (TFS) and Tasmania Parks and Wildlife Service (PWS) have been fighting the blaze for more than a week in the Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park in South West Tasmania.
The “Going” status of the fire has been downgraded to “Under Control”, but new images from the TFS have shown some damage to bushland in the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area has already been inflicted.
Large chunks of the landscape have been blackened in the 340ha fire, casting smoke into the usually pristine air in the remote, mountainous region.
Incident Controller Nic Dega said a PWS fuel reduction burn conducted just east of the fire zone in October 2020 has reduced highly flammable fuels and slowed the spread of the bushfire.
He said this move had helped contain the fire “well ahead of any damage to sensitive natural and cultural values”, namely Aboriginal sites and natural assets.
It comes more than a week after Greens leader Cassy O’Connor shared her fears for the safety of the Olegas Truchanas Huon pine reserve, which contains the island’s largest population of the distinctive Tasmanian tree species.
Ground crews and co-ordinated water bombers have quelled much of the blaze, but PWS has said the threat is not completely extinguished.
“With weather conditions forecast to continue to be dry and warm in the South West, the suppression effort will be maintained with aerial firefighting resources and remote area fire crews continuing to work their way around the boundary edge, identifying and extinguishing hot spots with continued aerial support,” PWS said.
For the latest fire updates, information and advice visit fire.tas.gov.au
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