TODAY February 13 is a day of Total Fire Ban in the Central district including Bass Coast Shire and French Island when special restrictions and conditions apply to the use of farm machinery and other equipment.
CFA State Control Centre spokesman Luke Hegarty has issued a warning that the most dangerous part of today’s Total Fire Ban is during and after a blustery wind change goes though this morning in Central district municipalities including Bass Coast.
“What we're looking at today is a pretty early wind change moving through compared to what we've had on other days of significant fire danger so far this summer, said Mr Hegarty speaking on ABC Gippsland this morning.
“So, it'll already be in the west of the state by the mid morning. So that means that we'll see that change into Gippsland somewhere around eight o'clock, into West and South Gippsland and and then sort of sitting a little bit to the west of East Gippsland, probably until tomorrow morning
“But that's that's probably our main concern in the Gippsland listening area. In addition to just being aware that is a hot and uncomfortable day, is that we're expecting to see this some pretty strong winds ahead of that wind change, and then when that does move through some potential for storms, which will continue into tomorrow, for people into the Gippsland region.”
He also warned of the arrival of lightning and intense storms cells to follow the change likely tomorrow.
“We’re looking at the likelihood of heavy rain with these storms, which is something that is always a concern for us when you get those pretty intense downpours in a short amount of time in a localized area. So that's the potential that we're looking at for tomorrow through the region.
“We have seen those lightning strikes of late start a lot of fires, and what's been fantastic is the reporting of those fires, and people monitoring those fires, if they see smoke or if they see flame, making sure they've reported that if they don't believe it's being reported.
“Already, at the moment, we've managed to contain all fires that have been so from that lighting, aside from one that crews are working on, which is in very remote territory up in Mount Darling and crews are making really good progress.
“But there were, on two occasions, over the past fortnight or so, in excess of 10,000 strikes hitting the ground through Victoria, let alone the light-show that we got the rest of the time.”
He also referenced The Gurdies and how the changeable coastal winds caused flare-ups in a fire started after the use of machinery.
“I think whenever we see the types of winds potentially going to be blowing through the central part of the state this morning, before the heat of the day, if those winds sort of persist, that's when we do see those types of fires like we saw down The Gurdies, where they move really quickly.
“They don't need, necessarily all the heat to get moving. It's just enough with strong winds.
“So that was certainly what we saw at The Gurdies, where those local sort of coastal conditions really did impact our ability to fight that fire on a few occasions.
“So, our message to anyone in that Total Fire Ban area is just make sure you're up to date with what you can and can't do on a Total Fire Ban day and jump on the CFA website and look at the ‘Can I can't I’ document that's really important if you are using equipment today, using it responsibly, and if you're out and about that you're just aware of any fires near you and staying up to date with what else is happening in your region
Here are some details on what you can and can’t do:
