Homes evacuated as crews battle bushfire
Homes evacuated as crews battle bushfire
03 November 2010
published by www.abc.net.au
Australia — Authorities say a fire burning east of Perth is heading in the direction of the suburbs of Hovea and Parkerville.
An emergency warning for parts of Swan View and Jane Brook has been downgraded but residents are being told to remain alert.
Fire crews evacuated homes in Pechey and Taaffe Roads in Swan View and Red Hill whose residents had been told to activate their emergency plans.
Dozens of fire trucks and earth moving machines are at the scene and four water bombers have been flown in from Bunbury as firefighters battle the blaze.
Two separate fires burning across the state have been downgraded to a watch and act warning.
The first fire broke out in John Forrest National Park earlier today and has so far burned 450 hectares of land.
Crews working from the ground and the air have managed to partially contain the fire but residents in the Hidden Valley subdivision near Parkerville are urged to remain alert in case the situation changes.
And in the state’s southwest, fire crews have made progress fighting a blaze burning four kilometres west of Nannup.
A bushfire watch and act warning remains in place for residents on farming land near Nannup and within the Archdall Estate.
One Swan View resident says she was concerned that the state alert fire warning system was not working properly.
“When I got to the prompt that we needed it was very blurry and I couldn’t understand it,” she said.
“So anyone else that was ringing probably wouldn’t have got much of a message either.”
Department of Environment and Conservation (DEC) incident controller, Kevin Pollock, says the fire has the potential to threaten homes.
Mr Pollock says the fire may have been accidentally lit.
“There was we believe a campfire around the eastern side, where the fire started, but that’s all we know,” he said.
He says 50 per cent of the fire has been contained but it still has the potential to threaten private property.
“One of our biggest drawbacks is the fact that it’s so steep, short, pinchy, rocky country and it’s making the efforts for putting in containment lines very slow,” he said.
A relocation point has been set up at Swan Park Leisure Centre on Gray Drive in Midvale.
Residents in nearby areas, including Red Hill on Toodyay road, are being told to remain alert and watch out for signs of fire.
The DEC says motorists should be aware of fire trucks and machines travelling along Toodyay Road and the potential for reduced visibility due to smoke.
Motorists encountering smoke should slow down and turn their headlights on.
Firefighters expect to be battling the blaze well into the night.
