Bush Fire Emergency October 2013
Published Date: 19 Oct 2013
Summary
Daily Liberal coverage of the October Bush Fire Emergency.
A state of emergency
By KIM BARTLEY
ANOTHER strike team is being put together by the NSW Rural Fire Service (RFS) Orana Team as much of the state burns.
It may take over where three tankers and eight volunteer firefighters deployed from Dubbo to Lithgow on Thursday leave off on Monday.
Across 12-hour shifts they have battled heat, embers and smoke in order to protect property and then mop-up.
The Orana team's deputy fire control officer Inspector Bob Conran yesterday morning reported that it had not received a formal request for further assistance.
But he is seeking to cover all potential bases as NSW throws everything it has got at the worst bushfire disaster in a decade.
That includes the deployment of firefighters this weekend, "when volunteers are usually available for a short deployment", and the securing of senior and experienced volunteers to fill management roles at the Orana Fire Control Centre if need be.
Two of the Orana team's full-time staff members have rolled up their sleeves in embattled communities, and "some others are on leave".
Orana team manager and fire control officer Superintendent Lyndon Wieland has gone "down to the Balmoral fire" and another colleague has been dispatched to Muswellbrook.
The team's response to the crisis as of yesterday morning also included the loan of a senior volunteer to manage the Lithgow air base.
"Obviously aviation plays a big role in fire-fighting activities these days and managing these resources is a very specialised role," Inspector Conran said.
Early yesterday morning about 100 fires were burning in the state, 34 of them uncontained.
Hundreds of homes had been burnt and the death confirmed of a man after defending his Central Coast home.
Fires near Lithgow and in the Blue Mountains and Hunter Valley were among those ranked as major by the NSW RFS yesterday.
Inspector Conran spoke on behalf of the Orana team when sending a message of support.
"Our thoughts go out to all those residents who have lost homes or been impacted in any way," he said.
The NSW RFS issued a plea yesterday for vigilance despite cooler conditions and lighter winds across the state. To date locals have been spared any fires this week.
"There's been absolutely nothing, thank goodness," Inspector Conran said.
Temperatures in the 30s are predicted tomorrow and Monday, but the deputy fire control officer expects normal operational conditions will apply, given abundant greenery and slower wind speeds.
Inspector Conran said contingency planning had ensured that the Orana zone was not left vulnerable.
Dubbo firefighters to head home after bushfires labelled under control
Rural Fire Service and NSW Fire and Rescue crews from Orana could be coming home as early as this afternoon after better than expected conditions aided the efforts to get Blue Mountains bushfires under control.
The horrific conditions that were forecast for Wednesday and yesterday didn't eventuate. However an emergency warning was issued yesterday afternoon for the stong wind gusts caused the State Mine Fire to jump the Bells Line of Road into unburnt bushland west of Bilpin.
Despite the danger, the situation was far better than originally predicted and it is expected that some of the 1300 firefighters who were called up for Wednesday's predicted firestorm will be sent home.
A contingent of 40 from Orana's NSW Fire and Rescue is expected to be released this afternoon and 50 RFS volunteers from the region could follow them tonight or tomorrow morning, depending on conditions.
MORE: Amaroo Hotel helping state's bushfire victims
BREAKING NEWS: Trangie pilot dies in fire fighting operations
Rural Fire Service Orana team leader Lyndon Wieland said crews were still on the fire ground and a decision on when his team would be relieved would be made this morning.
"The weather has been a lot cooler but it has been windy and that has led to an emergency warning being issued,"
"We still have crews in Lithgow and the Blue Mountains. If we send them back then we will bring another crew down to replace them.
"We have said all along that this will be a long term situation."
Fire and Rescue Senior Instructor Country for Regional West 1 John Cantrill said Orana crews had been working on property protection in the Lawson area.
"Thankfully none of the local community has suffered since we arrived and that has had a lot to do with the weather conditions but our crews have been operating well, working with the RFS and other crews," Mr Cantrill said.
He said they were expecting a late night last night and another spell this morning before their potential return to Dubbo today.
Fifty Rural Fire Service volunteers headed home
Fifty Rural Fire Service volunteers from the Orana region will return home from fighting bushfires in Lithgow and the Blue Mountains today while a team of 40 NSW Fire and Rescue fire officers arrived back in the region yesterday.
RFS crews were involved in backburning as the three fires at Lithgow, Mt Victoria and Springwood were all brought under control, and they will arrive back later today.
At this stage neither organisation plans to send replacement crews but that could change next week, especially as the clean up operation begins.
RFS Orana team leader Lyndon Wieland and Corine Llievski will head to RFS Head Office early next week for a major incident coordination.
Meanwhile, RFS second in command Rob Rogers has praised the efforts of everyone that has taken part in operations across the state in the last fortnight.
Mr Rogers headed RFS efforts against the fire emergency in the Blue Mountains, which has torn through about 60,000 hectares of bushland and destroyed more than 200 homes.
He has been pulling 16-hour shifts through the nine-day crisis and says that like many at the RFS, both at Sydney headquarters and out in the field, he has been "running on adrenalin".
Wednesday had been billed as a day of extreme fire danger for NSW and "unparalleled risk" for those in the Blue Mountains, with out-of-control blazes burning near houses at Springwood, Mt Victoria and Lithgow where the fire was sparked by army explosives testing.
Many Blue Mountains locals fled the area and all schools in the region were closed as extremely hot weather and gusty winds fanned fires towards small communities in Bilpin, Berambing and Bell.
In the end, only a few homes at Springwood were showered with embers and two schools at Minmi, near Newcastle, were evacuated after a fire there flared up.
Rogers says planning and backburning by the state's firefighters saved the day, especially at Springwood.
"We did some really aggressive backburning operations at Springwood," he says.
"That Springwood fire really flaring up and showering so many embers was one of those really critical moments.
"If that fire had taken hold outside, I have no doubt we would have lost a lot of properties."
Intense action as firefighters answer the call
DANNY Lummis slept pretty soundly on a fold-up stretcher at the Lithgow showground during his first stint on the fire fields at Lithgow and the Blue Mountains last week.
More than a decade of service as a volunteer with the NSW Rural Fire Service (RFS) has taught him how to secure a good night's sleep.
It has got a lot to do with being "mindful of what's happening" when on duty and always establishing an "escape option", although 12 hours or more a day of hot and hard yakka helps.
Mr Lummis, who started fighting fires at Collie when he was 14 years of age, downed tools as an electrician for Essential Energy when the NSW RFS Orana team sent a strike team to Lithgow last Thursday.
The RFS asked for expressions of interest to join the statewide assault on multiple fires and 25-year-old Mr Lummis didn't hesitate.
A crew of eight, including Mr Lummis' girlfriend and sister, gathered at the Orana Fire Control Centre in Dubbo for a briefing on a fire emergency that was significantly worse by the time they made it to Lithgow in three tankers.
VIDEO, GALLERY: Orana team's relief for Blue Mountains
GALLERY: Blazes threaten united front
"We didn't know what was going to happen," he said.
"It didn't look very good."
The crew was immediately deployed to defend homes in Lithgow's Macauley Street.
Later, after a quick dinner of steak sandwiches at the showground, the volunteer firefighters travelled to Clarence to again protect property.
The following day they helped build containment lines and back-burned near Hartley Valley Road.
On Saturday the crew went to Bell where it extinguished a fire that was threatening a home in "fairly dense scrub".
It was "pretty intense" for a while and involved telling the owners of the property to "jump in our fire trucks" if the plan of attack failed.
The diversity of the three-day deployment sits well with the young man who through extensive training and experience has risen through the ranks to become the captain of the Dubbo Headquarters brigade.
"The biggest thing is being able to adapt to a changing situation," he said.
"You can't have the mindset that you are going go down there and back-burn. Plans change pretty rapidly."
Mr Lummis acknowledges the fear factor in fighting fires.
"I think there's always a level of fear, but it's just a matter of dealing with it," he said.
The young man will return to Lithgow tomorrow having again packed a small bag.
"We travel as light as possible because we have to get all the gear in the truck," Mr Lummis said.
Orana team manager Lyndon Wieland yesterday called its volunteers "special people".
Locals help battle fiery front
By MARK RAYNER
Rural Fire Service members from the Orana region were hard at work on the front line of bushfires in Lithgow and the Blue Mountains, helping with the effort to contain blazes in some of the worst conditions seen so far.
A third contingent of 50 RFS volunteers were on the fire field on Wednesday. They joined more than 1300 firefighters and 367 trucks that were battling 69 fires across the state, 23 of those uncontained.
The worst of those continue to be in the Blue Mountains, including the State Mine fire near Bilpin and the Mount York fire at Mount Victoria, but the Linksview Road fire at Springwood was also causing headaches as strong winds carried embers and threatened to start more blazes.
As of late Wednesday afternoon, there had been no additional property loss, but the total stands at 208.
Fires weren't just restricted to the Blue Mountains, with two breaking out at Minmi and Lake Macquarie yesterday and sparking emergency alerts.
However the focus for the Orana firefighters was.
"The is the third lot of volunteers we have deployed to Lithgow and the Blue Mountains," NSW Rural Fire Service team leader Lyndon Wieland said.
"There are 50 RFS volunteers from the area who are down there and they are performing duties like property protection, backburning, deepening backburning and working on containment lines.
"We have also had a number of our staff deployed down there in various roles."
Superintendent Wieland is one of those staff. He was in the role of night incident controller at RFS headquarters at Katoomba during the weekend and after spending Monday and Tuesday nights at Dubbo, returned to the Blue Mountains yesterday afternoon.
"I got back into Dubbo on Monday. You generally do three to five days down there, then they give you a day or two off to go home, do your washing and get ready to go again," he said.
According to Superintendent Wieland, even once the fires are brought under control there will be a long term effort to ensure it is completely extinguished.
GALLERY: Region West Strike Team heads to the Blue Mountains
VIDEO: Orana fire teams depart for fire-ravaged Blue Mountains
"This is going to be ongoing. Even once the worst is over, there are still going to be weeks and weeks of clean-up," he said.
While firefighters rightly earn recognition for heroism for putting their lives on the line to help others, Superintendent Wieland said local businesses also deserved praise for allowing employees time off to contribute.
"I would like to get the message across that we need to thank the businesses who are allowing volunteers to have the time off to go and fight these fires," he explained.
"For every firefighter who is on the ground, there is someone back there doing two jobs to cover them and they deserve thanks.
"We shouldn't ever forget those people."
Orana sticking by compatriots
THE NSW Rural Fire Service (RFS) Orana will continue to deploy team members to Blue Mountains operations as the state braces for a return of dire bushfire conditions.
Orana team manager Lyndon Wieland said personnel and equipment would be there "as long as we need to be" - and that could be some time.
The RFS warned of a return of high temperatures and strong winds from yesterday afternoon through to midweek and told residents of the township of Bell to leave and head for Lithgow.
INTERACTIVE: Thank our firefighters
MORE: State of emergency declared as bushfire conditions worsen
Superintendent Wieland, based at Katoomba since Thursday, said it was likely to take a long time to gain control of and then put out the multiple fires that had already destroyed 200 homes.
"Some may not be out until we have some good rain," he said.
The Orana team sent three tankers and eight volunteer firefighters from Dubbo to Lithgow on Thursday.
They were due back home today, and the area's second crew arrived on Saturday, Superintendent Wieland said.
Some of the remaining volunteers were called to a small fire near Tomingley on Saturday night.
Superintendent Wieland said it was put out, but implored people to take every precaution they could to keep the Orana zone fire-free.
Orana team's relief for Blue Mountains
VOLUNTEERS from the Orana Rural Fire Service are travelling to and from Lithgow and the Blue Mountains in shifts to provide relief and assist local firefighters on the front line.
Describing the Blue Mountains fire situation as the worst he has seen in his lifetime NSW Rural Fire Service Orana team manager Lyndon Wieland prepares to head back to the mountains this week.
Rural Fire Service volunteers from Orana are making the trip to Lithgow and the Blue Mountains to assist their colleagues with their firefighting efforts.
Superintendant Wieland has been working in the Blue Mountains and will return to the fire zone this week.
Click play to hear what he has to say about the situation.
RFS releases details about pilot's death
THE Rural Fire Service issued a press released on behalf of the family of David Black and the directors and staff of Rebel Ag yesterday.
Mr Black, 43, of Trangie, was engaged in aerial firefighting west of Ulladulla when his plane crashed on Thursday.
The circumstances of the accident will be the subject of an extensive investigation by Air Transport Safety Bureau, Rural Fire Services NSW and Rebel Ag.
The press release indicated precise details about the cause of the crash would be released following the investigations.
"David complete year 12 at St Peters College in Adelaide," the press release said.
"After studying mechanical engineering in South Australia, he pursued a career in aerial application, where from an early stage he demonstrated a high degree of natural skill, commitment and professionalism.
"He was one of the youngest pilots to graduate to turbine aircraft when they were introduced into Australia during the early 1990s.
"David was well regarded throughout the industry and had served in a leadership role as a director of the Aerial Agricultural Association of Australia."
At the time of his death Mr Black had logged about 10,000 flying hours, predominantly in aerial application.
"David was a great believer in continual professional development as evidenced by him gaining an airline transport pilot licence, command instrument rating as well as a masters in aviation from Newcastle University," the press release said.
"He was a popular and respected figure throughout the tight-knit aerial application industry and had operated in Malaysia, South Australia and NSW.
"Rebel Ag was established in 1982 and in 2011 David and his wife Julie bought the business and relocated to Trangie from their family farm at Forbes.
"Rebel Ag owns and operates a fleet of nine application and agricultural aircraft servicing the cereal and cotton growing areas of upper and central western NSW as well as contracting fire-bombing aircraft and pilots to rural fire services.
"David was a committed and loving husband and father and is survived by his wife Julie and three children.
"The family respectfully requests privacy during this difficult time.
"The family is not available for interview nor will be making any further comment.'
RFS remember David Black as man of courage
By HEATHER CROSBY
DAVID Black, killed water bombing a fire on the south coast, was a man of courage, ability and bravery.
The 43-year-old crashed into rugged terrain west of Ulladulla on Thursday.
He was a husband, father and skilled aviation business operator who had played a significant role in fire fighting operations in the Orana region and across the state.
Rural Fire Service Orana team leader Superintendent Lyndon Wieland described his friend and colleague as a hero.
"All of our guys who risk their lives to help others are heroes," he told the Daily Liberal.
PHOTOS: Pilot David Black was a husband, father and hero
"I knew David for about nine years and often used him for water bombing in the Orana area.
"He lived and ran a business from Trangie which is part of our rural fire district.
"We gave each other a lot of advice over the years about how to do things better with aerial (fire) suppression.
"David and his aviation company have always been there to help; it only took one phone call and he was straight in the air.
"I particularly remember an emergency last year when a house south-west of Trangie was threatened by a running grass fire.
"David's company was in action immediately and saved the house."
Mr Black completed year 12 at St Peters College in Adelaide.
After studying Mechanical Engineering in South Australia, he pursued a career in aerial application, where from an early stage he demonstrated a high degree of natural skill, commitment and professionalism.
He was one of the youngest pilots to graduate to turbine aircraft when they were introduced into Australia during the early 1990s.
Mr Black was well regarded throughout the industry and had served in a leadership role as a Director of the Aerial Agricultural Association of Australia.
At the time of his death aged 43, Mr Black had logged around 10,000 flying hours, predominantly in aerial application.
Superintendant Wieland said the Orana fire operations centre took a major morale hit when the news came through.
"Our staff felt like they had been hit by a bomb,' he said.
"His death has hit colleagues right around NSW. We all knew David and the important role he played."
"David's death is a terrible loss for his family, the Trangie community and the NSW fire-fighting family.
"He will be dearly missed."
Mr Black was a popular and respected figure throughout the tight-knit aerial application industry and had operated in Malaysia, South Australia, and NSW.
Rebel Ag was established in 1982 and in 2011 Mr Black and his wife Julie bought the business and relocated to Trangie from their family farm at Forbes.
Rebel Ag owns and operates a fleet of nine application and agricultural aircraft servicing the cereal and cotton growing areas of upper and central western NSW as well as contracting firebombing aircraft and pilots to the Rural Fire Services.
Mr Black was a committed and loving husband and father and is survived by his wife Julie and three children.
The crash is the fourth fatal accident in Australia involving an M18 Dromander aircraft since 2006, and the second to have crashed while fighting bushfires.
Smoky start to the week for Dubbo
DUBBO residents woke to a thick haze and the smell of smoke this morning but the closest fire is over 200 kilometres away south of Pilliga.
The small grass fire is listed as under control.
The NSW Rural Fire Service Orana Team were reporting this morning that there were 'no fires locally for the Orana team' and that the smoke was coming across from the Blue Mountains and Lithgow fires as well as the other areas still buring across the state.
All fires across NSW are currently listed with advice alert levels, with the exception being the State Mine Fire at Lithgow which has a watch and act alert level.
MORE: What you can do about the health impact of bushfire smoke?
Rural Fire Service crews remain on the ground in these areas as they continue to monitor the situation and back burn to strengthen containment lines.
The Rural Fire Service has reported it will be week's before the fires across the Blue Mountains will be extinguished.
The Defence Force issued a statement on Thursday apologising for igniting the fire accidentally. They are working closely with authorities on the matter.
TRANGIE PILOT DEARLY MISSED
By HEATHER CROSBY
THE Trangie pilot killed water bombing a fire on the South Coast was a man of courage and ability admired for his brave deeds and fine personal qualities.
David Black, 43, crashed in rugged terrain west of Ulladulla on Thursday.
The husband, father and skilled aviation business operator had played a significant role in fire-fighting operations in the Orana region and around the state.
Rural Fire Service Orana team leader Superintendent Lyndon Wieland described his friend and colleague as a hero.
"All of our guys who risk their lives to help others are heroes," he told the Daily Liberal.
"I knew David for about nine years and often used him for water bombing in the Orana area.
"He lived and ran a business from Trangie which is part of our rural fire district.
"We gave each other a lot of advice over the years about how to do things better with aerial (fire) suppression.
"David and his aviation company have always been there to help; it only took one phone call and he was straight in the air.
"I particularly remember an emergency last year when a house south-west of Trangie was threatened by a running grass fire.
"David's company was in action immediately and saved the house."
Superintendent Wieland said Mr Black's company was an important defender and protector during the disastrous Coonabarabran fire emergency early this year.
In scorching weather his planes took to the air as out of control fires threatened lives and property.
"David and his team played a major role in keeping the region safe," Superintendent Wieland said.
"They have always responded to fires very quickly, often in remote areas where it is difficult to position ground crews.
"David went down in rugged terrain. The Orana team knew about the accident soon after the crash and felt the loss deeply on a personal level.
"Even though David's company was paid for their contract work as far as we are concerned they are part of our firefighting family.
"Our aircraft and dozer operators and people on the ground all play an important part in protecting the community."
Superintendent Wieland revealed the Orana fire operations centre took a major morale hit with the news came though.
"Our staff felt like they had been hit by a bomb," he said.
"We had a lot of communication with David; in the air attacking fires and professionally about business operations.
"His death has hit colleagues right around NSW. We all knew David and the important role he played."
Superintendent Wieland was unable to comment on what caused the crash.
"It is up to investors to come up with the reason," he said.
"I can say that David was a very experienced professional pilot who ran a good operation.
"When fire posed a risk anywhere in the state David was either in the air or on standby.
"David's death is a terrible loss for his family, the Trangie community and the NSW firefighting family.
"He will be dearly missed."
