Sunday 20 December turned into a busy day for CFA brigades in the north-east.
At Barnawartha a significant fire burnt thousands of hectares and had the potential to threaten Wodonga. However, a rain storm fortunately helped CFA firefighters to bring that fire under control before it could impact Wodonga.
At 3.45pm, lightning strikes started fires on the western slopes of the Warby Ranges near Mt Bruno.
Significant resources were needed to bring the fires under control with Almonds, Boweya, Devenish, Glenrowan, Goorambat, Killawarra, Taminick, Thoona, Wangaratta and St James trucks, Goorambat and Glenrowan slip-ons, three DELWP slip-ons, Benalla's FCV, a bulldozer and the helicopter stationed at Benalla airport all dispatched to Mt Bruno.
While firefighters contained and quickly extingushed the fire in the open grassland, the fire in the steep bush terrain and along the ridge line was far more difficult to contain and had the potential to move fully into the Warby Ranges.
With the helicopter dropping water directly on the fire at the top of the ridge, firefighters laid two lines of 10 hose lengths, starting with 64mm reducing to 38mm. The trucks' pumps had just enough pressure to push the water to the fire on the slope and, in conjunction with the bulldozer, other firefighters on foot with rake-hoes created a fire break to contain the fire. A quick, heavy downpour of rain was the final assistance firefighters needed to bring the fire under control.
By 8pm, the fire was fully encircled by containment lines and made safe. The following morning crews from Boweya, Goorambat, Taminick and Thoona brigades completed mopping up and extinguishing all remnants of the fire, and they completed the job by 2pm on Monday.
Author: Robert Fraser