Resident Ben May saw a house in Seaton go up in flames. Picture: Nicole Garmston Source: Herald Sun
Victorian country firefighters battle a blaze at Dawson this morning, part of a fire that has extended 25,000 hectares across the south-eastern part of the state. Picture: Nicole Garmston Source: Herald Sun
POLICE in Victoria were tonight investigating a possible death in a fast-moving bushfire that destroyed several homes in the east of the state.
Police said investigators were at the small community of Seaton, about 200km east of Melbourne, where a home was earlier razed to the ground.
However, police were unable to confirm whether anyone had been killed.
Five houses had been lost in the blaze, which doubled in size today to cover about 45,000 hectares, Fire Services Commissioner Craig Lapsley said.
“Four of those yesterday afternoon were holiday homes or holiday shacks in the (Mount Baw Baw National) park itself and one this morning at Seaton was lost, which was a primary place of residence for a community member,” he told reporters in Melbourne.
PICTURE GALLERY: Bushfires threaten Victorian towns
A family had to rescued from their Seaton property, ABC Television reported.
They were safe but their home was destroyed.
A State Control Centre spokeswoman said four firefighters had to take shelter in their truck as the Glenmaggie blaze passed over them.
“They are all OK,” she said.
“They would have been working around the fire front and just in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
The fire truck was still able to be used, she said.
Emergency warnings were in place this afternoon for the towns of Dawson, Glenmaggie, Heyfield, Seaton and Licola.
The only access route to the town of Licola, Licola Road, remains closed to all traffic.
Hundreds of residents were evacuated early today as the fire far exceeded the size predicted in the CFA's modelling.
Mr Lapsley said the fire's size and remote location meant it would be a threat for weeks to come.
“The fire itself is looking to be a campaign fire, there's no doubt about that,” he said.
“One of the problems is that once it buries itself in the deep-seated bush area, the next northerly day it'll then come out near the communities of Heyfield again and Maffra.
“We're now planning for a two-week campaign fire.”
Mr Lapsley said the fire's rapid expansion had taken crews by surprise overnight.
“The fire was aggressive, very intense and fast moving through the night hours,” he said.
“Most would suggest that it should have been at about 4000 hectares overnight. It grew to be 12,000 hectares in size.
“That's due to the fact that it's been burning like a grass fire in forest conditions.”
Around 200 firefighters, 70 fire trucks and 13 aircraft are working on the fire, which Mr Lapsley said would take significant resources to contain.
“Once we move into the wilderness country we're moving into some very remote and, in particular, deep-seated bush environments which are difficult for anyone to get into, so we can't put ground crews in,” he said.
“It's not a single firefront, it's a number of firefronts, and it actually sprays, if that's the right word, embers across hilltops which sees the spread of fire from spot fires.”
Mr Lapsley said it was likely that livestock, fencing and farm equipment had been destroyed.
With AAP
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