Smoke blankets Melbourne as out-of-control bushfires burn in regional Victoria
Smoke haze is blanketing Melbourne as bushfires continue to burn out of control in regional Victoria, triggering two emergency alerts warning homes and lives are under threat.
A blaze in the Grampians – which first threatened the hamlet of Mirranatwa on Wednesday – flared up again on Friday as temperatures reached the low 30s and a strong south-westerly wind change pushed it east.
CFA crews respond to a fire in the Grampians on Wednesday.Credit: Hamilton Fire Bridge/Facebook
The towns of Mafeking and Watgania are now in the firing line. Residents have been told to leave immediately.
An updated emergency alert, released just after 4pm on Friday, said the bushfire was moving north-east towards Mount William. “The fire activity has increased under the south-westerly wind change,” the warning said.
Bornes Hill, Grampians, Jimmy Creek, Mirranatwa and Victoria Valley are still under a watch-and-act alert.
The fire danger rating on Friday in the Wimmera and Mallee districts is extreme, triggering a total fire ban. A relief centre has been set up at the Alexandra Oval community centre in Ararat.
The Grampians bushfire on Friday.Credit: VicEmergency
State Control Centre spokesman Luke Hegarty said winds were shifting as a cool change moved across Victoria, causing the Grampians smoke to spread to central parts of the state.
“Right now, if you can see or smell smoke but can’t see fire, do not call triple zero,” he said. “Only call triple zero in a situation where you can see flames or believe that there is a fire nearby.”
On Friday, a community information message was also issued in western Victoria for the air quality as smoke drifted east.
On the Bass Coast, another existing bushfire flared up on Friday afternoon near the town of Grantville on the road to Phillip Island.
The Gurdies, a hamlet with a population of 243, is under a “take shelter now” emergency warning as the fire near Woodland Close burns uncontrolled.
“That warning area has now expanded to include much larger area than what was initially part of the warning,” Hegarty said. “It includes St Helier, The Gurdies and Woodleigh.”
The alert said the fire was moving east from the Sand Supplies quarry close to the Bass Highway towards Gurdies-St Helier Road and Stewart Road.
“This fire is threatening homes and lives. It is too late to leave the area safely, so you must take shelter now,” the alert said. “You are in danger and need to act immediately to survive.”
A relief centre has been set up at the Grantville Transaction Centre.
Just before 5pm, a grass fire sparked a watch-and-act warning for the town of Bullengarook, near Gisborne, north-east of Melbourne.
The message said those close to the Coffeys Road blaze should stay near shelter.
Meanwhile, the Bureau of Meteorology has increased its temperature prediction for Christmas Day, saying a high-pressure system will move out into the Tasman Sea a little faster than first predicted.
The temperature in Melbourne is now forecast to reach 31 degrees on December 25. On Boxing Day, the predicted maximum is 39 degrees in the city. There will be a 40 per cent chance of rain.
More to come.
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