Still in blazing danger

EVERYBODY was on high alert on Saturday.

Extreme heat and wind made the conditions ideal for bushfire, and we all breathed a sigh of relief when the day passed without major incident.

Yesterday, in far milder weather, nobody would have suspected the conditions were conducive to a blaze sweeping through 70 hectares on the Bellarine Peninsula in less than an hour.

A grassfire that began near the Bellarine Rail Trail on Swan Bay Rd at Mannerim soon ballooned out of control, leading to emergency warnings issued for residents of Drysdale, Clifton Springs and Curlewis.

Around 100 firefighters, trucks from across the region and an aerial water-bombing helicopter were required to bring the massive blaze under control, while smoke was seen across the Bellarine Peninsula as far as Geelong.

How galling it must have been for those firefighters who put their lives at risk, those residents who were put on alert, the livestock and property owners who will be counting the damage today and those people with respiratory illnesses who were affected by the smoke to learn that police believe the fire was deliberately lit.

Crime statistics show that over the past decade there has been an average of 167 arson offences recorded each year in Greater Geelong — an average of at least three deliberately-lit fires each week.

While local arson cases dropped by more than 21 per cent on the previous year, there were still more than 150 arsons recorded in the year to September, prompting police to announce last month that they would be keeping known firebugs under tight surveillance this summer.

Geelong Inspector Gary Bruce said there were “quite a few” persons of interest being monitored across Geelong, the Surf Coast, Bellarine Peninsula and Colac.

Yesterday’s blaze was a frightening reminder of how little it takes for a simple grass fire to spread out of control.

It was also a reminder of how easily one person’s actions can cause mass destruction.