VIC: Winds cause nervous moments for Healesville

AAP General News (Australia)
02-17-2009
VIC: Winds cause nervous moments for Healesville

MELBOURNE, Feb 17 AAP - Healesville residents were given an alert message again in
the early hours of Tuesday as strong winds pushed a bushfire close to the town.

The fire burned within a few kilometres of Healesville's east and the small hamlet
of Badgers Creek, east of Melbourne, Country Fire Authority (CFA) spokesman Darren Grevis-James
said.

"We had a little bit of trouble overnight around Healesville," he told AAP.

"The wind was swirling around unexpectedly causing a bit of excitement so there was
a fair bit of work to contain all of that.

"There was a possibility Badgers Creek could come under ember attack with increased
smoke and fire activity but it didn't happen."

Healesville residents have endured fires burning close to their town for more than a week.

Coastal winds are also causing problems with a fire at Wilsons Promontory.

The top priority of firefighters on Tuesday will be protecting Melbourne's water catchments
from ash with bulldozers used to cut control lines.

"The CFA and DSE (Department of Sustainability and Environment) are doing a huge amount
of work with water authorities to take the fire out of those areas," Mr Grevis-James said.

The dams threatened include the Sugerloaf, Maroondah, O'Shannassy, Upper Yarra and Yan Yean dams.

Six fires are still burning out of control around the state with another 19 contained
fires still burning.

The fight to quell the flames continues as police search the wreckage for more victims
of Australia's worst bushfire disaster, which has claimed at least 189 lives.

Police expect the toll to rise further.

Stable weather conditions for the next two days should help firefighters to build control
lines around those bushfires still raging out of control in Victoria.

Containment lines surrounded 85 per cent of the Kinglake Murrindindi Complex and the
Bunyip and Beechworth fires were also close to being contained, a Department of Sustainability
and Environment spokeswoman said.

AAP gr/maur

KEYWORD: BUSHFIRES VIC UPDATE

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