Caution and planning urged as fire season starts

Principal Rural Fire Officer Southern Rural Fire District Mike Grant advises thosewho plan to light fires to burn rubbish and clear their properties’ that they need to takeextra care at this time of year.

Vegetation fires in the region nearly doubled last September from the previous year.

“All of those fires were preventable and it was a matter of people not taking account of the weather conditions and the dryness of vegetation before they lit fires”, he said.

The next three months are generally the time when we see most of our out of control fires in the region and it all coincides with the seasonal winds.

Mike Grant said that requirements for lighting fires are that there is at least a 30mspace in between heaps or trimmings and any other combustible material, such as hedges or buildings and that heaps are stacked on the down wind side of the prevailing wind so that the embers can’t blow back into the hedges.

Generally in Southland this is on the eastern and southern side of hedges.

Typically September is a time when farmers who have high country runs burn-off tussock.

After a harsh winter, with plenty of frosts and snow that material is now verydry, so those doing high country burn-offs will have to be extra vigilant and ensure that they have plenty of fire breaks, equipment and other resources before having a burn off.

They are also going to need a snow cap to burn to in most cases.

Keep a close eye on the weather and make sure that you will have ideal weather conditions for three or four days after you have your burn off. The primary concern toavoid is high winds.

“Burn-offs are an element of farm management that must be very carefully managed and planned for, just like many other aspects of regular farm maintenance”, he said.

If you have large material like stumps to burn, it might be better to wait until earlyautumn when the weather conditions are more stable.

Some of the biggest fires in New Zealand have been due to smouldering fires re-igniting weeks after they were lit.

Last year the worst day for fires in the region was on Friday October 13.

The majorityof those fires were due still smouldering heaps having embers which blew on to other combustible material setting it alight, often days or weeks after the initial fire.

Mike Grant said that if you wish to find out more on the best practice for burn-offs, or obtain a fire permit, then contact the Southern Rural Fire Authority on 0800 773 363 and allow up to five working days for permit applications to be processed