Tasmania Fire Service extinguish blaze at Dynnyrne
The Mt Nelson/ Dynnyrne bushfire area was able to be quickly contained thanks to the learnings from the Dunalley inferno - but a bushfire expert says Tasmanians have a bigger part to play in preventing such incidents. LATEST >>
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Authorities reveal cause of Dynnyrne fire
11.30am, Sunday February 20
A bushfire that took off in the Mt Nelson/ Dynnyrne area was able to be quickly contained thanks to the learnings from the Dunalley bushfire, according to the TFS Chief Officer, but a bushfire expert says Tasmanians have a big part to play in preventing such incidents.
Fire crews determined the cause of the blaze, which broke out on Saturday afternoon, was accidental.
“The investigation revealed the fire started with someone trying to do the right thing and clear the vegetation from their house,” TFS chief officer Dermot Barry said.
“They were using a brush cutter, the metal blade on that had struck a rock and the sparks from that ignited a small fire and very shortly, because of the terrain and a bit of wind, it took no time for that to become a large fire.
“Yesterday’s incident clearly demonstrates how important it is that people maintain vigilance … something as simple as having a garden hose on hand can make all the difference.”
A $50,000 cabin was destroyed but homes were saved.
The blaze was quickly brought under control with the help of specialised aircraft and a strategy to hit fires hard and fast to prevent small hot spots from growing.
“What we do now is a process called rapid weight of response, we learned it from Dunalley and the mainland fires as well,” Mr Barry said.
“We had between 70 and 80 firefighters working and of course they were supported by eight aircraft at the height of the fire as well.
“They worked hard, it’s not a case of the machinery does the work, they’re still busting their boiler trying to protect the community.”
Mr Barry said a controlled burn in November also prevented the fire from spreading further.
“When the fire started to move over the hill, it ran into that pre-burned area and that slowed it down,” he said.
“It gave our crews time to get on top of it and stop that rapid spread.
“Had that burn not been conducted, there’s every chance it could have got over the hill and who knows how big it could have been.”
Bushfire professor at the University of Tasmania David Bowman said the fire was a wakeup call that Tasmanians also had a role to play in preventing bushfires.
“We can’t get complacent,” Prof. Bowman said.
“There are a limited number of helicopters, helicopters are expensive and it’s dangerous work.
“We’ve got to be understanding how lucky we are that we have people willing to do this dangerous work but we’ve also got to get the community taking more responsibility.”
Mr Bowman said with many people living in areas surrounded by bushland, it was important to take simple actions to prepare properties.
“One of the features of Hobart is we live in a beautiful setting but that beautiful setting is very combustible,” Prof. Bowman said.
“This is something we’re going to have to deal with.”
Bushfire at Dynnyrne and Mount Nelson
5:50pm, Saturday February 19 – Update: Hobart fire crews are breathing a sigh of relief after a bushfire at Dynnyrne which came within metres of homes was contained with the help of specialised aircraft.
The blaze broke out before 2:30pm at Oberon Court on Saturday and was quickly elevated to a Watch and Act warning.
Tasmania Fire Service Chief Officer Dermot Barry, who was at the fire front, said the blaze was about three hectares in size.
“Not large by any extent, not compared to the fires we’ve had this summer, it was the risk to the community that was the real threat here,” Mr Barry said.
“They came within metres of homes.”
The TFS mobilised several fixed wing aircraft and helicopters to water bomb the blaze.
“At the height of the fire, it was an out of control fire,” Mr Barry said.
“They’re the biggest risk, all firefighters are concerned about them, they move fast.
“The aviation assets made such a big difference, consistent with our approach now which is about a rapid weight of attack and the use of aerial assets combined with ground forces which really quickly hit fires.”
Tasmania Police Sgt Andrew Morton said the fire was noticed by a police vehicle on patrol.
“The police officer that actually witnessed it to start with said it started off quite small but spread really quickly,” Sgt Morton said.
“The flames were at some stages 30 metres in height so it was pretty scary, especially for the occupants nearby.”
Residents were told to leave their homes as the fire edged closer.
“A number of house on Oberon Street needed to be evacuated and then the fire was quickly spreading to Mt Nelson,” Sgt Morton said.
“Out of concern a number of houses at Olinda Grove were also evacuated.
“At this stage it doesn’t appear any properties have been damaged or anyone has been injured.”
Some power poles were damaged by the blaze.
Investigations into the cause of the fire are ongoing.
“We still have proctors road blocked, there’s been a number of boulders fallen onto the road which need to be cleaned off,” Sgt Morton said.
Mr Barry said the blaze was contained before 5pm, but that crews would remain at the scene.
“They have the fire contained, we’ve still got aerial assets operating but we’re in the process of mopping up and ensuring there’s no hotspots,” he said.
“Without the hard work of our fire crews and support of the air attack, I dare say there could have been worse outcomes today.
“It’s a dry day today, thankfully the wind wasn’t bad and they were able to contain it.”
Mr Barry said it was a timely reminder for everyone to prepare their homes and have a bushfire safety plan.
“Please do it if you haven’t already and then just have your house prepared,” he said.
“Clear around your house, clear your gutters, do those simple things that make it so simple for us to protect your property.”
Meanwhile fire crews continued to work to contain a bushfire within the Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park.
Fixed wing aircraft were sent in to battle the bushfire, with the blaze reaching 340ha on Saturday.
“Along with water bombing, a helicopter has been used to sling in water bladders, pumps, portable dams, hand-tools and hoses to assist the on-ground effort,” Parks and Wildlife Services incident controller Alex Bradley said.
“An automated portable weather station has been set up to record localised weather conditions.”
The land is owned by the Aboriginal Land Council Tasmania.
“Aboriginal firefighters have been on the fire ground providing guidance and assisting with protection of Aboriginal heritage sites,” Mr Bradley said.
Visitors have been asked to stay away from the area, 17km south of Strathgordon.
3:32pm – Update: An emergency warning has been issued for a bushfire burning on Olinda Grove at Mount Nelson.
Tasmania Fire Service crews are urging people to evacuate now if they are not prepared with the chance of burning embers expected to threaten homes.
The blaze is travelling North West and is out of control.
Authorities say conditions are expected to change this afternoon.
Meanwhile a watch and act warning has been issued for Oberon Court and Proctors Road at Dynnyrne.
The blaze is expected to be difficult to control.
Residents in the Sandy Bay area received an emergency alert via text message warning them to evacuate their homes if not prepared.
3:00pm Saturday, February 19
A shrub fire at Oberon Court Dynnyrne has been elevated to a Watch and Act warning after it broke out before 2:30 this afternoon.
Firefighters have deployed nine tankers and two aircraft to battle the blaze.
Proctors Road above View Street has been closed off as firefighters attempt to contain the shrub fire.
Shark sighting, Okehampton Bay
11:12am Friday, February 18
A shark has been spotted in East Coast waters this morning – the second shark sighting in one week.
The animal is reportedly around three to four metres long and was spotted 500m off shore in the Okehampton Bay area at Triabunna.
It’s not known what type of shark it is.
Tasmania Police are warning swimmers in the area to be safe.
It comes after another shark measuring around four to five metres jumped out in front of a surfer at the mouth of Prosser River at Orford last Thursday.
A 35-year-old scuba diver was killed by a shark while training for a long distance ocean event in Sydney yesterday.
Serious crash, Bell Bay
11:12am Friday, February 18
The driver of a car and his passenger are in a serious condition in Launceston General Hospital following a crash with a truck on the East Tamar Highway at Bell Bay last night.
At around 6:35pm a white Hyundai IX5 and a flatbed truck collided near the Tamar Valley Station.
A 41-year-old Westbury man driving the truck escaped the crash uninjured.
Tasmania Police are investigating the serious incident and are calling on anyone who witnessed the crash or saw either vehicle prior to the accident to contact police on 131 444 or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000. Information can be provided anonymously.
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