‘Prepare for more wildfires’
Fires such as the blaze in February that raged across more than 2300 hectares near Nelson must be expected to occur more frequently and everyone needs to be prepared, says an independent review.
‘‘There was a general lack of awareness within the Nelson and Tasman community around the risk, to them, of unplanned fire,’’ says the operational review report by the Australasian Fire and Emergency Services Authorities Council.
The reviewers found a general impression that the fire, which started in tinder-dry conditions on February 5 this year about 30km southwest of Nelson in Pigeon Valley, was a one-off.
‘‘Because of this feeling, there appears to still be a reluctance, by some, to change the way they do things and to incorporate fire protection into their day-to-day business or home life,’’ the report says.
Fire and Emergency NZ released the review report yesterday. Speaking from Richmond Fire Station, near Nelson, national commander and deputy chief executive of service delivery Kerry Gregory said that in a changing environment, the fire season in Australia was starting earlier.
‘‘That is going to arguably happen here as well so we need to actually be more prepared for that,’’ Gregory said. ‘‘These aren’t one-offs; this will happen again.’’
After the Port Hills fire at Christchurch in 2017, ‘‘the same things were said at that time – this is a one-off’’ but two years later firefighters faced a similar situation with the Pigeon Valley blaze.