Firefighters make steady progress on bushfires

THE Tasmania Fire Service says crews have made steady progress on containment lines at bushfires across the state, with more cool weather expected in the coming days.

However, the TFS said access to some fire-grounds was limited yesterday due to low level cloud around the Cen- tral Plateau and the SouthWest.

There were still 28 fires statewide yesterday, with 18 classified as active.

The TFS said a strong cold front today was expected to continue to make firefighting difficult in some areas because of slippery ground, access issues and dangerous trees. Gusty winds and low cloud are forecast in some areas with a strong westerly to southwesterly air flow forecast for the remainder of this week.

To date, 205,388ha have been burnt across Tasmania.

There were 486 personnel and 24 aircraft working on the fires yesterday, including 175 firefighters from interstate and New Zealand.

There are seven watch-and-act alerts in place for the fires on the Central Plateau and in the Huon Valley.

The Parks and Wildlife Service has reopened a number of national parks and walking tracks, including the Walls of Jerusalem National Park, four-wheel-drive tracks around Zeehan, Rosebery and Heemskirk and parts of Cra- dle Mountain-Lake St Clair National Park.

Campfire restrictions remain in place across all national parks, reserves and Crown Land statewide until further notice.

PWS deputy secretary Jason Jacobi said while the change in weather conditions had eased the fire threat, visitors should remain vigilant.

Meanwhile, the State Government has held a roundtable with forest industry representatives to discuss fire damage to production forests.

Resources Minister Sarah Courtney said more than 70,000ha of private and public forest land had been impacted by the bushfires across the state, with the worst damage in the South.