Firefighters have brought a grassfire on Melbourne’s south-western fringe under control, as authorities urge Victorians to prepare for what is predicted to be the state’s worst bushfire season in a decade.
The blaze, at Little River, between Werribee and Geelong started just before midday and within 15 minutes prompted authorities to urge nearby residents to evacuate.
Emergency services deployed about 50 fire trucks, two large air-tankers, helicopters and an air-crane to battle the blaze and managed to slow its spread before declaring it under control shortly after 8:00pm.
The fire, which authorities are treating as suspicious, burned through an area covering about 1,240 hectares and is believed to have destroyed a number of sheds.
The blaze started north of Little River and travelled south where it crossed the rail line, causing V/Line to stop train services between Melbourne and Geelong.
Authorities said about 130 homes would need to be examined for damage once they were safe to return to.
Emergency Services Minister Lisa Neville said it was vital Victorians were fire-ready.
“It’s a reminder to all of us that this summer is going to be hot, it’s going to be dry and that we’re going to see more and more days like this,” Ms Neville said.
“So the message or the reminder out of these last two days is that summer has hit and that we all need to be absolutely prepared,” she said.
“We need all Victorians to take this seriously.”
Firefighters faced their first major test of the summer yesterday when they contained a 40-hectare blaze at Buninyong, near Ballarat in western Victoria.
CFA chief fire officer Steve Warrington in August urged Victorians to prepare for the worst fire season in a decade, warning that record-breaking low rainfalls in some parts of the state had produced the most dangerous conditions since Black Saturday, when 173 people died in February 2009.
Earlier today, CFA incident controller Geoff McGill said the Little River fire was being treated as suspicious and appeared to have three points of origin.
He said investigators would look into those locations when it was safer.
“We’ll be treating them as suspicious,” he told ABC Radio Melbourne.
“I don’t want to make any assumptions at this stage … but yes it is disappointing if it’s found out to be deliberate.”
Local resident John Stevens said such suspicious fires started “far too often” in the area.
“The fire started pretty much in the same spot about three years ago,” he said.
“It’s very frightening.
“You worry all the time. All the neighbours are always constantly looking for suspicious vehicles.”
Maddie, who works at the Little River General Store, said it was upsetting to hear the fire may have been deliberately lit.
