Fire threat: Gerry Verdoorn inspects dry grass at North Geelong. Picture: Tommy Ritchie 75868
ERIN PEARSON
GEELONG firefighters fear illegal burn-offs could spark major blazes across the region as January continues to heat up, according to CFA regional operations manager Gerry Verdoorn.
Mr Verdoorn said the CFA had been called to more than a dozen illegal burn-offs since Boxing Day.
“A majority of our personnel in the CFA are volunteers, so they’re leaving their families and work to deal with fires they shouldn’t have to deal with. They’re being called out unnecessarily,” he said.
“Most people committing this are absent land owners who return over the summer period to their holiday homes and want to clean up.”
Boxing Day marked the start of an annual fire season law requiring council permits for burn-offs.
A Gnarwarre CFA crew narrowly escaped death earlier this month when its tanker became stuck while responding to a grassfire at Stonehaven.
Mr Verdoorn said the CFA believed embers from an earlier burn-off ignited the blaze.
“When people burn rubbish they end up with a pile of ash where hot embers remain for weeks if not months,” he said.
“A crust forms over the ash and actually insulates the heat, so on a windy day live embers can blow away and spark fires.
“People must ensure this doesn’t happen, it’s too late to be burning now.”
Geelong Weather Service’s Lindsay Smail said Geelong was in for a typically hot summer with less than average rain.
“This is always a bad time of year for fires and being on track for an average summer the risks are certainly there,” Mr Smail said.
“There probably won’t be much more rain until we get into February.”
Crime Stoppers launches campaign to dob in bushfire arsonists – page 11
