The fire above Burnett’s Creek on October 25 - this eventually became the Mt Barney National Park fire. Photo Drew Creighton
The Mt Barney National Park fire - on the Queensland side - is now burning well within containment lines.
It’s an achievement which brings a sigh of relief from Glenn Fearby, a member of the Croftby-Carney’s Creek Primary Producer Brigade.
The Mt Barney National Park fire began from a lightning strike on Thursday, October 17, high on a mountain in National Park land above his property at Burnett’s Creek.
By the weekend, Glenn and fellow brigade members, local landholders and other rural brigades were fighting a major bushfire that seemed unstoppable.
Eventually it burned its way through to a firebreak in the vicinity of the Border with New South Wales and was considered contained but it remained necessary to monitor it daily.
Then on one of the many high fire danger days, a large branch burning high up in one of the trees along the break, split away from the trunk and sent burning timbers and flying embers into unburnt scrub and the race was on to again tame the fire front.
In the days and weeks that followed, the fire headed towards Woodenbong and eventually made its way back into Queensland and was being fought on multiple fire fronts.
By then it had become an uncontrollable monster with fire crews from rural brigades and National Parks from both sides of the Border battling to hold it along newly cleared, old firebreaks and along new firebreaks pushed through by dozer and by hand, in the more difficult terrain.
Eventually, the fire fight was won and on Thursday last week, the Primary Producer Brigade was stood down. The fire front was monitored by other local rural brigades on Friday and Saturday and is now under the management of National Parks.
“On Monday, I went along the firebreak up around the Border Gate and down the road from there and it’s looking good,” said Glenn, “it’s burning well within containment lines and you can only get the odd whiff of smoke.”
In total, according to the NSW Rural Fire Service, the fire burned through 25,460 hectares (62,900 acres).
“It’s a relief,” said Glenn. “It’s been a continual call on our time since it started.”
