Firefighters gain the Upper Hand on Bushfire near Howes Valley

BY JESSICA ROUSE

Fire fighters are gaining the upper hand on a blaze burning in remote bush southwest of Singleton.

The fire near Howes Valley was upgraded to Watch and Act yesterday evening, but thankfully was downgraded late last night as fire activity subsided.

The blaze has now burnt through more than 3,500 hectares in difficult terrain, and the Rural Fire Service says there are a couple of isolated properties within the fire area, but at the stage no homes are under threat.


"The winds haven't been too bad but its certainly been really hot and dry in the area," said an RFS spokesperson.

Crews remain on the fire ground monitoring the conditions.

The advice from the RFS is to follow the advice of firefighters in the area and check and follow your Bush Fire Survival Plan.

Image MJF Productions.

Total Fire Ban for Fourth Day in a Row in the Hunter

BY JESSICA ROUSE

We're in for another scorcher of a day here in the Hunter.

Temperatures will soar into the 40s across the region today - Muswellbrook is expected to see a maximum of 43 degrees, it'll be about 10 degrees cooler on the coast.

Maitland will see 42 degrees, while Wallsend will see 39 degrees.

A Total Fire Ban is in place for the Greater Hunter for the fourth day in a row with severe fire conditions due to the forecast hot and windy conditions.

There are currently 36 fires burning across NSW heading into today, 12 of those are uncontained.

Image MJF Productions.

TOTAL FIRE BAN for the Hunter Ahead of another Warm Day

BY JESSICA ROUSE

It was a rough night's sleep in the Hunter last night, with the temperature still in the mid 30's for much of the region at 9:30pm.

It didn't get much cooler through the night it didn't get much cooler than the low to mid 20's.

It wasn't just hot last night, yesterday saw record temperatures with Nobby's reaching it's hottest day in five years at 41.4 degrees and Williamtown hitting nearly 44 degrees.

We're in for another warm one today with Wallsend expected to swelter through another 42 degree day and Maitland is also in for another hot one with an expected 43 degrees.

With that, the Rural Fire Service (RFS) has declared another Total Fire Ban for the Greater Hunter today.

"That's due to forecast hot, dry and windy conditions expected through parts of those areas today. That means there are no fires in the open and obviously if you want to know further you can visit the RFS website and your best off spending those couples of minutes before we turn up to extinguish any fires you may have and an infringement notice is sent out," said James Morris from the RFS.

"There is still warmer conditions predicted for tomorrow however we will see a cooler change come through on Wednesday which will hopefully bring milder conditions across much of the state and hopefully a small amount of rain in that as well."

For information on any fires near you head to NSW RFS Fires Near Me

UPDATE: Fire burning at Lovedale now Advice Level

BY JESSICA ROUSE

UPDATE: 4:55pm

Fire crews are still on the ground battling the blaze at Lovedale.

It has been downgraded to Advice level, but has burnt through 88 hectares of land around Lovedale Road.

Wind conditions are easing in the area and the fire is now moving away from properties burning in a south to south easterly direction under north westerly winds towards Maitland Road.

The fire is producing considerable smoke in the area.

At this stage the advice is to monitor conditions and have your fire plan ready to go in case fire does threaten and the conditions change.

For the latest details from the Rural Fire Service head to: Fires Near Me

Looking out towards Lovedale from Rutherford.

UPDATE: 3:30pm

Rural Fire Service crews are continuing to battle the 5 hectare blaze on Lovedale Road.

The fire is still at Watch and Act Level at this stage.

The advice from the Rural Fire Service is that residents in the area of Barnard Road, Londons Road, Old Maitland Road, Abermain, Cessnock, Neath and Weston monitor the situation and put their fire plans into action if necessary.

Residents are also being asked to take the advice of firefighters in the area.

UPDATE 3:05pm

A fire has broken out in on Cessnock Road at Neath.

2:45pm

A bushfire is burning out-of-control at Lovedale, south west of Maitland and is at WATCH and ACT level.

It's burning near Lovedale Road at Lovedale.

Rural Fire Service crews are on the scene and are being assisted by NSW Fire and Rescue, and water bombing aircraft are on their way to help.

RFS Inspector Ben Shepherd said there are no homes directly under threat at this stage.

"It is burning in a southeasterly direction under some northwesterly winds. It is moving towards Majors Lane."

"The conditions are changing. We need people to stay alert and take advice from firefighters on the ground and make sure they know what they'll do in the even the fire threatens."

Watch & Act: Lovedale Rd, Lovedale. Fire burning approx 7km NW of Cessnock. Moving SE direction under strong NW winds towards Barnards Rd. Crews on scene with aircraft support. Residents in area should follow their bush fire survival plan & take advice from firefighters #NSWRFS pic.twitter.com/1FHAh5BT0i

— NSW RFS (@NSWRFS) December 14, 2017

Rural Fire Service Banning All Permits Ahead of Catastrophic Fire Season

BY JESSICA ROUSE

The Hunter arm of the Rural Fire Service (FRS) is urging everyone to have a fire plan ready to go with hot and dry conditions ahead likely to make fires burn with more intensity and speed.

Due to the current and predicted weather conditions, the RFS are also suspending all fire permits from the 1st October in a bid to stop the potential for fires, even burnt safely, from getting out of hand.

Inspector Martin Siemsen says the season has started early this year with elevated fire conditions the past week and there's expected to be dry, hot and unfavourable conditions this weekend as well.

He says they're ensuring they take every precaution they can to limit the number of calls out to fires.

"So this weekend we've got an indicator that we could well and truly be into elevated fire dangers so we're talking about very high to potentially into the severe category."

The fire permits will be suspended for areas in the Lower Hunter including Port Stephens, Cessnock, Dungog and Maitland.

"We need to watch out for people in the general community and people need to be aware of what the fire danger ratings mean, they need to be aware of what that means for them in relation to whether they live in a bushfire prone area or near a bushfire prone area and they need to make decisions," said Inspector Seimsen.

A Total Fire Ban could be on the cards this weekend.

"As of the 1st October to the 31st March we have a Bush Fire Danger Period that's implemented in the state of NSW... that will start 1st October but due to the continued dry conditions and the elevated temperatures that we're seeing and weather conditions in general so we decided to suspended the issue of permits," said Inspector Seimsen.

Information about Total Fire Ban declarations is published at www.rfs.nsw.gov.au .Locals can also call the Lower Hunter Fire Control Centre on 4015 0000 or the Bushfire Information Line on 1800 NSW RFS (1800 679 737).

Residents Urged to Stay Away from Richmond Vale Railway Museum

BY JESSICA ROUSE

Cessnock City Council is urging residents to stay away from Richmond Vale Railway Museum and surrounding bushland.

It comes after fire ripped through the area on Wednesday - the fire burnt through 920 hectares of land, tragically destroying some of the museum's stock.

The Rural Fire Service (RFS) has declared the site a 'Fire Ground' and an exclusion zone has been enforced. No one, including the public, volunteers and media, can enter the site without consent from the RFS.

"This is a huge loss for our community, in particular for the dedicated volunteers who have worked tirelessly for many years to preserve our railway and mining heritage," said a council spokesperson.

The Railway museum released a statement on their Facebook page yesterday echoing the council's warning to residents.

"Museum members and members of the public are advised that security has been posted at the museum's access road to control admission, and that police will be patrolling the area. Please stay away."



The losses the museum suffered during the blaze include:
- 3 stainless steel passenger cars
- 10 of 16 restored non-air coal hoppers and almost all non-restored wagons
- All of the unrestored general freight vehicles
- Approximately 2.5 kilometres of track
- Damage to number 1 bridge on the link line to Pelaw Main

"These losses mean that the museum's rail operations will be suspended pending gradual track rehabilitation. An announcement about other aspects of the museum's activities will be made as soon as access issues are resolved."

Old burnt-out coal wagon Image AAP/Darren Pateman

Richmond Vale Rail Museum Damaged in Fire

BY LAUREN FREEMANTLE

The fire at Richmond Vale has caused significant damage to the Richmond Vale Railway Museum on Leggetts Drive.

Three railway carriages have gone up in flames and are destroyed, whilst hundreds of sleepers have been scorched, according to Museum Chairman Peter Meadows, who recently arrived at the site.

"There's three of them that have gone up in flames- they're totally gone, just a mess," he said. "Some of the stock that was out the back is written-off as far as I can see."

An emergency warning was issued by the NSW RFS in relation to the Richmond Vale fire earlier today, as it burnt through 700 hectares of bushland, however it has now been downgraded to a 'watch and act' situation.

"It looks like the majority of the fire has passed us now," Mr Meadows explains, "but there's still smouldering everywhere- there's trees and wagons smouldering ..."

He estimates the damage bill will exceed $100,000 and worries the Railway Museum will be forced to cease operation, as track repair alone will likely take several months.

"As I look down the track, all I can see for 800 or 900 metres is smoking wood and sleepers, which means every one of those needs to be replaced."

Peter Meadows commends the efforts of the Rural Fire Service, saying they've worked strenuously to contain the blaze.

A serious bushfire has impacted some rail exhibits at the Richmond Main Railway Museum near Kurri Kurri. Details on @nbnnews tonight at 6 pic.twitter.com/eQlKY3ghTM

— David Threlfo (@David_Threlfo) September 13, 2017

Funding for Bushfire Mitigation

BY JAMES WARD

The Port Stephens community has received $90,000 in funding as part of the National Bushfire Mitigation Programme to prevent and maintain bushland around the area that may be susceptible to large fires.

The funding comes as part of the new $15 million National Bushfire Mitigation Programme, $4 million in which was given to New South Wales after a number of fires affected the state last summer.

Areas including the Tank trail and the Tongue trail are set to undergo maintenance to prevent the trails from fires and clear easier pathways for the rural fire service to eliminate spot fires.

Parliamentary Secretary for the Hunter, Scot MacDonald, says the funding was necessary after a number of fires have ravaged the area in recent years.

"They are two very important bushfire access trails, as you know we have had some very serious bushfires over the last few years, so maintaining fire trails is extremely important," MacDonald said.

The rural fire service will conduct the maintenance as they prepare for the summer ahead while weather conditions are favourable.

"We take advice from rural fire services, always they are the best ones to give the best direction on where to mitigate, and its about doing the work at this time of year when it is cooler and wetter."

"We do encourage people to have a bushfire survival plan, we do live in a dry climate, we have had good rain this winter which will mean vegetation growth in spring and fire conditions that we will need to be mindful of coming into summer." MacDonald stated.

For more information refer to the Rural Fire service website www.rfs.nsw.gov.au/resources/bush-fire-survival-plan. and also the Emergency New South Wales website.

Source: ABC

Bushfire Danger Period In Hunter Finally Ends

BY IAN CROUCH

Rural Fire Service volunteers in the Hunter are looking forward to spending more time with their families after a very busy bushfire danger period, which officially winds up today.

The RFS turned out to more than 1200 jobs in the Lower Hunter, including the huge Lone Pine fire at Port Stephens which burnt out more than 9,000 hectares over eight days, and the Racecourse Road fire at Cessnock which tore through just over 1,000 hectares

More than 500 volunteer firefighters battled those two fires assisted by 13 aircraft.

BREAKING! Out Of Control Bush Fire North Of Singleton

BY IAN CROUCH

Fire crews are at the scene of an out of control bush fire at Camberwell north of Singleton.


The Rural Fire Service has just issued an Emergency Warning for residents.

The fire is burning in the vicinity of McInerney Rd, Alpha Street, Lethbridge Street, New England Highway, Glennie Street, Dyrring Street, Dawson Street and Dulwich Place.

The fire has crossed the New England Highway and is heading towards Camberwell Village.

The RFS says residents should shelter in place as the fire front arrives and take advice from firefighters in the area.


So, far it's more than 10 hectares neat the historic village and the New England Highway is closed in both directions.

The Transport Management Centre says motorists should use the Golden Highway instead and allow extra travel time.

Two storey structure fire at Vacy

BY GARY-JON LYSAGHT

Firefighters from the Rural Fire Service and Fire and Rescue NSW
are tackling a blaze at a two storey structure at Vacy, near Dungog.

There are reports more than 40 firefighters and 12 trucks are at the building on Summerhill Road.

Firies are fighting the fire from a distance because there are fears the building could collapse.

RFS are reporting the attached garage is storing firearm ammunition.

All the occupants have been accounted for.

Hazard Reduction Burn For Mount Sugarloaf

BY IAN CROUCH

 The Rural Fire Service is conducting a hazard reduction burn at Mount Sugarloaf west of Newcastle today.

Around 18 hectares of bush is being burnt near the transmisson towers.

Motorists on the M1 Pacific Motorway and nearby residents are being advised to expect to see and smell smoke in the area.

Lake Macquarie Council says the car park, lookout and walking trails at mount Sugarloaf will be closed today, with the burn expected to wrap up at about 7.00pm.

The Transmission Towers On Mount Sugarloaf

Fire Crews Battle Separate Bush Fires at Heddon Grteta and West Wallsend

BY IAN CROUCH

Fire crews are trying to contain a large grass fire at Heddon Greta.

The blaze broke out just after 4am near the off ramp to the Hunter Expressway and is burning in a hectare of inaccessible swamp opposite the golf course but is not posing a threat to property.

Drivers on the Hunter Expressway are being advised to exercise caution due to the large amount of smoke in the area.

It's believed arcing power lines in high winds may have sparked the fire.

Meanwhile more than 50 firefighters have worked through the night on a bushfire at West Wallsend.

The fire started at about 8 o'clock in bush off O'Donneltown Road after a car was dumped and burnt out.

It took crews several hours to bring the 30 hectare blaze under control - no home were under threat.

End of bush fire season

The Hunter Valley Rural Fire Service is celebrating the end of a hectic bush fire season today

The end of the 2013-2014 season means permits are no longer required to do any burning in the open however residents of Singleton, Branxton, Musswellbrook and Denman still require permits from Fire and Rescue NSW

Super Intendant Paul Jones, from the Hunter Valley RFS says the Hunter Valley has a longer bush fire season than other parts of NSW

"Conditions were drier and we also had a number of lightening storms go trough the area that created fires in remote areas that required substantial effort to contain, so yeah, a bit busier than normal but we expect that in the Hunter Valley it's a very fire prone area."

Super Intendant Jones warns that residents still need to be wary, "they should be using the cooler weather and the more moister weather to make sure that their properties are well prepared, manage their assets protection zones around their assets, do any required burning off that they need to do, the RFS is more than happy to assist with that".

Power restorded in Port Stephens

Power has been restored to 35-thousand homes in Port Stephens following yesterday's devastating bush fires.

Light rain and cooler conditions has helped firefighters strengthen containment lines on 3 fires at Fingal Bay, Salt Ash and Heatherbrae.

Dozens of people were forced to spend the night at an evacuation centre set up at Willaimtown and there are still a number of road closures in place.

Brendan Doyle from the Rural Fire Service said crews have worked through the night to gain the upper hand on the fire.

"The Salt Ash fire that was burning for most of the day yesterday is now contained. Fire crews are working quite hard on the the Fingle Bay and Heatherbrae area to get containment as soon as possible through the day. Fortunately no threat to property at this stage." Mr Doyle said.