THE hard work of volunteer firefighters successfully salvaged a grass fire which erupted near Willowmavin last month, despite the presence of curious onlookers posing a hazard for emergency services.
The cause of the fire, which began around midday on Saturday, February 22, and travelled from McHargs Road in a southerly direction towards Kilmore-Lancefield Road, continues to be investigated.
More than 35 fire trucks attended the fire with volunteers from the SES, Ambulance Victoria, and Forest Fire Management Victoria, which was contained after it reached bushland, according to Kilmore Fire Brigade Captain Hayden Dally.
“Initially it was out of control,” he said.
“The good part was it hit some bushland which slowed it up, so in that respect, that certainly helped with it, but that added complexity … to get into [the bush] and put it out.
“The initial response was five brigades, then it went to 10 and then it went to 20. We ended up with another two strike teams, which is another 10 trucks, coming in later on and another overnight strike team.”
While residents in the immediate area were warned to stay indoors or evacuate, the gathering of bystanders in the area as crews attended to the blaze disappointed Captain Dally, who urged locals to stay away from fires, and formulate plans to leave early instead.
“People seemed to be attracted to the smoke and headed in that direction, which is not very good for the fact that there’s emergency vehicles going out there, and we don’t need to be contending with extra traffic,” he said.
“They need to learn to stay away.”
Kilmore Fire Brigade Lieutenant Greg Murphy said the traffic management points were put in place to ensure crews could perform their jobs effectively.
“The message for the community is the warning has been put in place to stay away from the area,” he said.
“By coming to the area, they are actually adding to the traffic in the area, making it more dangerous for themselves and emergency responders.
“Stay away and let us do our job, and we’ll keep you informed through the normal channels.
“Traffic management points are put there for a very good reason—that’s protection of people inside and outside the cordoned area.
“We understand that some people may feel the need to approach those points, and there may be times when they can come through them depending on the classification of the traffic management points, [but] the message can’t be any clearer—if you don’t need to be in the area, don’t be in the area.”
Captain Dally emphasised it was still a dangerous time of year for fires.
“It’s still dry … the danger is still there,” he said.
“They only have to reflect on the Mickleham fires in 2014, which came through on a 20 degree day on a south wind. The danger is well and truly still there.”
