Ash Wednesday warning

By Marc McGowan
LOCAL fire brigades are drawing comparisons with the Ash Wednesday fires of 1983 and warning that 200607 may be one of the worst bushfire seasons on record.
They are urging people to follow fire safety precautions carefully.
There is a fear that the bushfire season will arrive up to two months earlier than normal and this has been reflected by the Country Fire Authority, which already has implemented fire restrictions. The restrictions mean that no more burning off is allowed without a permit.
Despite muchneeded rain arriving in the past week, Officer Fire Brigade captain Gary Barnes has warned that the rain means little to the bigger picture.
“It will only take another week of 24 or 25degree weather for us to be back where we were,” Mr Barnes said. “We are miles down on rain.”
Graeme MacGowan, who is the captain at Upper Beaconsfield Rural Fire Brigade, believes the community needs to be more prepared than previous years.
“It’s going to be worse. This is why the CFA has decided to bring restrictions in early,” says Mr MacGowan, whose station has been called to three fires in the past month.
The situation is so severe that it is drawing comparisons with Ash Wednesday, which resulted in the loss of 75 lives in Victoria and South Australia.
“Those fires started off similar to this year. It was quite a dry winter leading up and they had fires leading up to it,” Mr Barnes said.
The remnants of the Ash Wednesday fires were still apparent at his station. “There are plenty of people at the station who were involved with Ash Wednesday and they will certainly never forget it,” he said.
In response to the threat, the CFA is preparing to launch an extensive advertising campaign.
“A lot of people in the community are complacent. They think we won’t be under threat,” Mr Barnes said. “Ash Wednesday came right through here.”
The Upper Beaconsfield Rural Fire Brigade is doing its bit by running Fire Ready Victoria Street Corner Meetings. “We have just finished a stint of them over a two or threeweek period and we have another couple this month,” Mr MacGowan said.
It will also hold a community meeting at the station on November 29 at 7.30pm.
Bunyip Fire Brigade captain Stuart Coster said there were still many homes that had not taken precautionary measures.
“Most importantly, clean gutters and other ground fuels like dead leaves and grass piles. These provide perfect avenues for the bushfire to cross into neighbouring areas,” he said.
Local fire brigades are looking for volunteers and anyone seeking information on fire safety can contact their respective fire brigade.