November 2009
This month wasn't as busy as the last.
Our hazard reduction program was curtailed owing to the weather, permits were cancelled four times and there was a total fire ban for a 24-hour period - all on days we planned a burn.
There were three callouts; one to remove a tree on Barrengarry Mountain, one to an unauthorised burn and the other to assist in a hazard reduction burn.
In this instance the owner had a permit, had contacted fire control and the neighbours but upon realising that he needed assistance, rang 000.
Both trucks with full crews provided help and advice to ensure there was no danger to neighbouring properties.
A community Firewise meeting was held at the fire station on October 10, attended by Inspector Tim Carroll and Regional Fire Mitigation Officer, Phil Patterson, plus approximately 40 local residents.
We would like to thank all those who attended and, given that some rain has reduced the immediate fire threat, we were quite happy with the response.
We must stress that with the warmer weather coming it may not be long until we are back to where we were very quickly.
The book provided at the meeting, BUSH FIRE SURVIVAL PLAN, is an excellent leaning tool for people on ways to prepare their household against fire and the need to have a Bush Fire Survival Plan in place.
There was also a current Fire Danger Map available, which provided information on fires and total fire bans. The meeting concluded with a BBQ lunch cooked by members of our team.
Both Tim and Phil forecast a very high risk of a bad bush fire season this summer. We recommend that you access the RFS website http://www.rfs.nsw.gov.au/ to obtain a copy of the Bush Fire Survival Plan book and information on the current fire situation in the area.
We must continue to stress, permits are required before conducting a burn-off. Penalties may apply for any unauthorised burns. Contact David Smart, Keith Nelson or Bill Chittick to arrange a permit and please remember that they are all volunteers, so the more notice you can give to them to issue the permit the better. Your immediate neighbours and Shoalhaven Fire Control (4424 4424 Monday to Friday) must also be notified at least twenty-four hours before burning off.
Fire Control has informed us that any fire larger than a "camp fire for cooking" requires a permit.
We also ask that if you are reporting a fire, ring 000. Please do not ring fire control or any member of the local brigade. A call to 000 initiates the communication plan, ensuring that immediate assistance is provided. All our Fireys carry pagers that alert us to an incident but these are not controlled locally so ringing one of us does not help.
Until next time, be fire wise.
Cinderfella