The official bush fire season may be over, but it’s dangerous to become complacent.
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The ongoing drought or near-drought conditions across vast expanses of the region means the risks are still there.
Temperatures are running higher and rainfall lower than is normal for this time of year.
In town this month five of the first 12 days have been above 30°C, well up on the monthly averages experienced in April in past years.
A quick scan of the land anywhere in our regions shows parched pastures that could ignite in a second.
We are crossing our fingers that this changes this weekend, with the promise of rain predicted for the town. Of course we aren’t getting our hopes up too high until we see the rain falling from the sky but we’ve got a 90 per cent chance of 5-10mm on Friday so we can hope.
The Rural Fire Service have said they appreciate the communities help in remaining vigilant and assisting them during the warmer season, and that hasn’t stopped with the change in the calendar.
While staying vigilant, residents can continue to help the RFS and their local NSW Fire and Rescue brigades by giving close attention to future fire and damage prevention.
Ensure the fire alarms and smoke detectors in your homes are working properly and follow the warnings and tips issued for the winter months on avoiding blazes in the home.
Between now and the October 31 start to the next bush fire season, ensure you keep the grounds around properties tidy and free from fire fuel and most importantly make sure you update your bush fire plan. It could save your family’s lives.
If you haven’t done one … do it now because with this warm weather you just never know when a plan could save your life.
The tips are available from the RFS and your local fire brigade, and are even online – so they aren’t hard to find at all.
And don’t think they are going to take up too much time either – they are easy to achieve, and really there shouldn’t be an excuse not to get these lifesaving jobs done. Get cracking.
The best thanks we can give the firies is to do the right thing and help them prevent and limit fires and the damage.
Let’s all commit to doing that.
