Articles tagged: Bushfire
Parched spring sparks concern
FIREFIGHTERS have fought almost 50 grass and scrub fires in Colac and district since September as the Otways had their driest spring on record.
Volunteer shares vivid memories
A COLAC and district firefighter remembers the eerie feeling the morning of one of the Otway’s darkest days.
District fire officers head to Canada
NINE south-west Victorian firefighters are travelling to Canada to help fight hundreds of forest fires burning in the country’s west.
Lavers Hill is priority for next fire refuge
EMERGENCY Management Commissioner Craig Lapsley says the next community fire refuge the State Government builds will be at Lavers Hill.
Lavers Hill residents want cash for refuge
LAVERS HILL residents “urgently” need the State Government to fund a community fire refuge which could save hundreds of lives when the Otways face a firestorm.
640-hectare burnoff today at Barongarook
AUTHORITIES plan to ignite a 640-hectare burnoff today at Barongarook, south of Colac.
Lightning cuts electricity and causes Otways fires
THOUSANDS of Colac and district residents were without power for up to two days after a lightning storm swept the region and damaged powerlines and transformers.
District prepares for total fire bans and summer heat
TODAY is a day of total fire ban for Colac and south-west Victoria, with another ban likely for Saturday as temperatures soar.
Fire season plans swing into action
Colac district’s fire season plans are in full flight with a multi-agency training day boosting crews’ preparations.
Tennis court proposal as bushfire last resort
A TENNIS court and community parks could become last-resort options for Colac district people caught in a bushfire.
New fire rules threaten Otways residents
CONTROVERSIAL planning rules could leave Otways and coastal residents homeless and stop them rebuilding if bushfire destroys their homes.
One fire refuge but more still needed
COLAC Otway Shire has its first last-resort bushfire refuge at Apollo Bay but high-risk towns are still going without.
‘Invaluable’ helicopter fights grassfire
FIRE crews relied on an aerial attack to fight an inaccessible grassfire west of Colac this week.
Powerlines clashed, says bushfire lawyer
POWERLINES clashed multiple times between Colac and Camperdown in the years leading up to Colac district’s Black Saturday bushfires, a lawyer is arguing.
