By JOSEPHINE TOVEY
November 22, 2009 THE worst fire conditions ever seen in November are expected today as the mercury rises to about 40 degrees and beyond across NSW. The Rural Fire Service, already stretched with 1000 firefighters battling more than 140 blazes across the state yesterday, is bracing for what Assistant Commissioner Rob Rogers described as the most dangerous combination of heat, wind and dryness. ”It makes fires very, very difficult to control, if we don’t catch them very quickly we won’t be able to put them out,” Mr Rogers said. Crews were readying themselves for what they feared would be a nightmare 24 hours. ”Obviously they’ve been very busy but they’ll drag themselves out for another day,” he said yesterday. ”We’ve just got to get through tomorrow and then the weather calms down for a couple of weeks.” The RFS has issued an extreme fire warning for the greater Sydney area, the highest so far this year. The Bureau of Meteorology predicted highs of 41 degrees in Sydney and western NSW today. Extreme warnings were issued for Richmond and the Hunter with temperatures predicted above 40 degrees and strong north-west winds expected to make fire-fighting conditions more difficult. Premier Nathan Rees said the weather was unprecedented and warned people in fire-prone areas to remain vigilant. ”It has never been this hot, dry or windy in combination ever before,” Mr Rees said. … But even with temperatures lower than expected in many places on Saturday, heat records for November continued to tumble over the weekend. The town of Hay is on its way to the hottest November in 128 years, tallying an average of 36 degrees so far this month. Albury, on the Victorian border, has also suffered under a prolonged hot spell, recording temperatures above 33 degrees for 13 days in a row. … Extremes fan 14O blazes
November 22, 2009 MORE than 140 fires were burning across the state yesterday. The biggest threat came in the mid-afternoon when an emergency warning was issued to residents around Rylstone, near Mudgee, as a blaze came within eight kilometres of the town. Residents who did not have a bushfire plan were urged to evacuate as aircraft rushed to extinguish the fire. Those who stayed were warned about 4pm to implement survival plans. Rural Fire Service Assistant Commissioner Rob Rogers said firefighters could not get to every blaze in the area. ”There are numerous fires … that we do not have the time to deal with,” he said as the flames jumped Windemere dam about 4.30pm. Extreme conditions in the Blue Mountains and Lithgow area brought fires within kilometres of Bilpin, Mountain Lagoon and St Albans, but there was no risk to life or property. Fires were also burning in bush near Inverell, Glen Innes and Narrabri. The number of fires doubled throughout the day as hot weather and lightning strikes ignited trouble spots west of the Hunter.
Hot and bothered as state scorches
