The 191,000-plus hectare Kerry Ridge fire has been declared 'out', marking the end of one of the busiest periods experienced by the Cudgegong RFS District.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
With over 700km of perimeter, the fire burnt National Park, State Forest and private property. But with the Palmers Oaky fire declared 'out' last week, the region can afford a little breather.
"After managing [Kerry Ridge] under 'Major Incident' conditions in the region for 53 days and 79 days of the fire, it's nice to see that it's proceeded to 'out'," Inspector Troy Gersback, of the Cudgegong RFS District, said.
"It was a significant effort, not only by the RFS but also by our sister agencies in National Parks and Wildlife Services and NSW Fire and Rescue, as well as all of the other local emergency services, heavy plant and aircraft contractors, and - importantly - the community.
"It's fantastic to get to this point, that's the last one on the books for us, and puts an end to what has been one of the busiest periods that this area has seen in a number of decades."
And added that after moving to a targetted attack, last weekend's rain - the nearby Nullo Mountain weather station had over 130mm since Thursday - finished it off.
"We were using Remote Area Firefighting Teams to specifically target hot areas, where there wasn't active fire but there were edges that could've potentially re-ignited," he said.
"That work went on for about two weeks to really put that to bed. Then on the weekend we saw some good rainfalls, particularly around the Rylstone Nullo Mountain area across to the Hunter Valley, which really got us to the point where it's all-said-and-done and the threat of re-ignition had subsided."
Inspector Gersback said that although it's a good marker to reach, he still urges community vigilance and to keep taking care and reporting new ignitions early.
"While it's fantastic that we are starting to see some good rainfall in certain areas, we're not out of the woods yet and there are still a number of weeks left to run in the current fire season. And if we don't see ongoing substantial rainfalls it will dry out very quickly," he said.
"You only need to look out to Mount Frome and Barigan - that the Kerry Ridge Fire was stopped from getting in to - to see that it's still significantly drought affected and the tree tops are brown. It's certainly the right time to enjoy a breather and the relief of getting some good rainfall, but we can't take our eye off the ball - people still need to be ready and prepared.
"Permits for the region are still suspended and we're continuing to review it, hopefully if we get more rain we'll be able to revisit that."