ID :
208586
Wed, 09/21/2011 - 13:50
Auther :
Shortlink :
http://m.oananews.org//node/208586
The shortlink copeid
Arsonists blamed as NSW fire season begins
SYDNEY (AAP) - 21.09.2011- Arsonists are suspected to have started all 10 fires scorching the Blue Mountains, as firefighters continue to battle a three-day blaze in the dense bushland area west of Sydney.
Twenty of the 50 fires burning across the state on Wednesday had not been contained at 5pm (AEST) on Wednesday, a spokesman from NSW Rural Fire Service told AAP.
The worst blaze, believed to have been deliberately lit at Leura on Monday, has so far destroyed 14 hectares of bushland and threatened six homes.
It's one of 10 fires that have been lit in the region and all of them are being treated as suspicious, Inspector Rolf Poole from the rural service told AAP.
Insp Poole said the blazes were taking resources away from hazard reduction in preparation for the start of the bushfire season on October 1.
"What's happened as we have been distracted by these arson attacks from hazard reduction. That's particularly frustrating," he said.
Premier Barry O'Farrell warned of a tough bushfire season, with a wet winter followed by unusually hot spring weather making hazard reduction difficult.
"It is going to be a tough bushfire season. What we don't need is people lighting fires," he said.
"I would encourage members of the public, if they see people behaving suspiciously, to contact police."
Strike Force Tronto was reactivated by authorities on Wednesday to target arson crime.
"Anyone found to be involved in the deliberate lighting of bushfires will be dealt with under the full force of the law," Detective Superintendent Greig Newbery warned.
While authorities were holding a press conference at Katoomba at 11.30am (AEST), another fire was believed to have been started deliberately at Tablelands Road in Wentworth Falls.
It left behind a small patch of charred shrub and grass, just metres from the end of a public walking track.
Supt Newbery said authorities were going through a list of suspected and known arsonists.
"We want to really enforce that we treat bushfires very seriously," he said.
On Wednesday, firefighters were working on containing the three-day blaze at Olympian Parade, Leura.
Crews on the ground were pumping water into the bush, while two helicopters dumped water over the smoking canopy.
Ron Salz from Community Fire Units (CFU) saw flames come within 10 metres of his house and said the blaze was a reminder of how quickly a fire could shift.
"I could see flames coming right up to our neighbour's house," he told AAP.
Further north in Tamworth, a fire started at 1.30pm (AEST) on Wednesday, ripping through 26 hectares by the afternoon.
It's not known yet how the fire was started, a spokesman from NSW Rural Fire Service told AAP.
Twenty of the 50 fires burning across the state on Wednesday had not been contained at 5pm (AEST) on Wednesday, a spokesman from NSW Rural Fire Service told AAP.
The worst blaze, believed to have been deliberately lit at Leura on Monday, has so far destroyed 14 hectares of bushland and threatened six homes.
It's one of 10 fires that have been lit in the region and all of them are being treated as suspicious, Inspector Rolf Poole from the rural service told AAP.
Insp Poole said the blazes were taking resources away from hazard reduction in preparation for the start of the bushfire season on October 1.
"What's happened as we have been distracted by these arson attacks from hazard reduction. That's particularly frustrating," he said.
Premier Barry O'Farrell warned of a tough bushfire season, with a wet winter followed by unusually hot spring weather making hazard reduction difficult.
"It is going to be a tough bushfire season. What we don't need is people lighting fires," he said.
"I would encourage members of the public, if they see people behaving suspiciously, to contact police."
Strike Force Tronto was reactivated by authorities on Wednesday to target arson crime.
"Anyone found to be involved in the deliberate lighting of bushfires will be dealt with under the full force of the law," Detective Superintendent Greig Newbery warned.
While authorities were holding a press conference at Katoomba at 11.30am (AEST), another fire was believed to have been started deliberately at Tablelands Road in Wentworth Falls.
It left behind a small patch of charred shrub and grass, just metres from the end of a public walking track.
Supt Newbery said authorities were going through a list of suspected and known arsonists.
"We want to really enforce that we treat bushfires very seriously," he said.
On Wednesday, firefighters were working on containing the three-day blaze at Olympian Parade, Leura.
Crews on the ground were pumping water into the bush, while two helicopters dumped water over the smoking canopy.
Ron Salz from Community Fire Units (CFU) saw flames come within 10 metres of his house and said the blaze was a reminder of how quickly a fire could shift.
"I could see flames coming right up to our neighbour's house," he told AAP.
Further north in Tamworth, a fire started at 1.30pm (AEST) on Wednesday, ripping through 26 hectares by the afternoon.
It's not known yet how the fire was started, a spokesman from NSW Rural Fire Service told AAP.
