Well-prepared homes ‘may not be defendable’, Tas fire service warns

Author : mamun Published: January 24, 2019

Updated

January 25, 2019 07:02:53

Photo:
600 firefighters from around Australia and New Zealand will be on the firelines. (Supplied: Claude Road Bushfire Brigade)

Hot temperatures, strong winds and dry thunderstorms will combine in Tasmania today to create what is expected to be the worst day of the fire season.

Key points:

TFS says today is the ‘”worst fire danger day of the season”
Severe fire danger is likely to cause dozens of existing blazes to break their containment lines
A state-wide total fire ban is in place until 2:00am on Monday

Tasmania’s fire agencies are bracing for the worst, with 28 out-of-control fires still burning.

There is a combined fire line of more than 800 kilometres and about 64,000 hectares now burnt.

Major concerns remain for communities in the state’s Central Plateau as well as towns south of Huonville, with the Tasmania Fire Service (TFS) advising people to leave.

The TFS is warning about of the possibility of embers sparking new fires up to 20 kilometres ahead of existing blazes.

Erratic fire behaviour is expected, TFS chief officer Chris Arnol said.

“Even those whose homes are well prepared will find that under these conditions, their property may not be defendable,” he said.

There are emergency warnings for Waddamana, Hilltop, Penstock Lagoon, and Shannon, in the Great Pine Tier on the Central Plateau.

At 6:47am (AEDT), Zeehan and Rennison Bell were upgraded to an emergency warning due to a fire at Lynch Hill on the west coast.

A watch and act alert was issued late last night for the same fire for Rosebery.

The fire is moving in a southerly direction towards Renison Bell, where an underground tin mine is located.

Photo:
The TFS says some houses will be undefendable despite being well prepared. (Supplied: Claude Road Bushfire Brigade)

Forecast weather for today will move the fire easterly towards the township of Rosebery, with the predicted potential impact between 12:00pm and 3:00pm.

Watch and act warnings are also in place for Miena, Barren Tier and the Bronte Park area on the Central Plateau, as well as in the state’s south for the Tahune Airwalk and areas south of Huonville.

Six hundred people are currently working on the firefighting effort, including 145 personnel from interstate and New Zealand.

Strong, gusty and hot north to north-westerly winds are expected to develop this morning, with gusts up to 90 kilometres an hour in the afternoon.

Some parts of the state are forecast to reach at least 38 degrees, including at Bicheno, Glenorchy and New Norfolk. Hobart is expecting a top of 37 degrees.

Severe fire danger is predicted for the Midlands, South-East, Upper Derwent Valley and East Coast, with very high fire dangers across much of the remainder of the state.

There is also the risk of new blazes sparking due to dry thunderstorms.

A statewide total fire ban is in place until 2:00am on Monday.

Photo:
Strong winds and low humidity is expected to make fires impossible to control. (Supplied: Claude Road Bushfire Brigade)

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