VIC: Lightning on hottest Xmas for 46 years brings bushfires

AAP General News (Australia)
12-25-1998
VIC: Lightning on hottest Xmas for 46 years brings bushfires

MELBOURNE, Dec 25 AAP - Firefighters are battling bushfires across Victoria tonight, many
started by lightning strikes which came with a cool change ending the state's hottest
Christmas Day in 46 years.

By 6pm, 15 of the state's available 19 aircraft were in the air fighting fires, five major
fires were burning out of control and crews were en route to at least four new blazes started
by lightning strikes.

The change followed high temperatures statewide, with Melbourne reaching 36.3 degrees
Celsius just before 2 pm.

Bureau of Meteorology senior forecaster Terry Ryan said it was the hottest Christmas Day
since 36.7 degrees in 1952, but lower than the record of 40.7 degrees, set in 1907.

Early this evening the two largest uncontrolled fires were at Carapooee, 12 km south of St
Arnaud, and in the inaccessible north-east of Wilson's Promontory.

Country Fire Authority (CFA) spokeswoman Susan McKenzie said the fire at Carapooee had
burned 152 hectares of grassland and was being fought by 10 tankers and three aircraft.

"That is a very large one and growing," she said.

It appeared to have been caused by lightning and was burning farmland stubble.

"There are isolated farms in the area but at this stage there is no threat," Ms McKenzie
said.

The CFA also had 25 tankers and three aircraft fighting a a medium-sized fire in steep,
bushy and inaccessible country 6 km north of Lancefield, west of the Tooborac Road.

It was also fighting a fire of more than 50 hectares, and growing, at Rises Gap, in the
Grampians, 5 km south of Dadswells Bridge, home of the Big Koala.

There were 12 tankers and two aircraft at that fire, Ms McKenzie said.

Thirty Department of Natural Resources and Environment (NRE) firefighters and three fire
bombing planes spent today fighting the Wilson's Promontory fire.

Late this afternoon another 30 firefighters were en route from Melbourne to relieve them,
with no prospect of the fire being controlled before tomorrow.

NRE central fire coordinator John Lloyd said the fire had burned about 30 hectares of
wilderness but posed no threat to Christmas campers on "the prom".

"We are now looking at a shift change at Wilson's Promontory for the night shift, so the
fire is giving us problems down there and still burning in the wilderness area.

"It is no problem as far as people or property are concerned. It is still in the national
park," he said.

Mr Lloyd said a late afternoon thunderstorm across the ranges had led to a rash of fire
reports.

NRE firefighters were also coping with a fire caused by a late afternoon lightning strike
at Swifts Creek, in the state's far east.

"They are hitting it hard with retardants so we believe it will be kept fairly small," he
said.

There were also new lightning strikes west of Mount Beauty, south of Dartmouth reservoir.

"There are about four in that area. We are sending in a rappel crew, two fire bombers and a
helicopter, plus 20 people on the ground who are being sent into the area," Mr Lloyd said.

The NRE, which had 150 firefighters on standby, was also helping the CFA fight its three
large fires.

AAP sjg/jnb/br

KEYWORD: BUSHFIRES VIC NIGHTLEAD

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