Vic: Firefighters assess damage after horror firestorm

AAP General News (Australia)
12-15-2006
Vic: Firefighters assess damage after horror firestorm

MELBOURNE, Dec 15 AAP - Weary Victorian firefighters have begun taking stock of a disastrous
day in which bushfires destroyed several houses and a man died.

A 48-year-old man was killed near Heyfield in Gippsland last night when he fell from
the back of a moving trailer and was run over while battling a blaze on private property.

Earlier, in the state's north-east, at least nine houses were destroyed, including
five at Gaffneys Creek and four at A1 Settlement.

Houses were also razed in the Gippsland communities of Toongabbie, Cowarr and Seaton
as a new blaze, believed to have been deliberately lit, swept through the region.

The Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) had said the full extent of
the damage would not be known until after daybreak.

State duty officer Mark Woodman said communities around Gaffneys Creek and the A1 Settlement
were still on high alert, but the fire danger had eased elsewhere.

He said the intensity of yesterday's blazes took firefighters by surprise as the mercury
hit the mid-30s and winds gusted at more than 60km/h.

"It was always going to be a bad day but the forecast was actually revised yesterday
morning, it turned out to be a worse day than we were anticipating," Mr Woodman said.

"It basically was warmer than we were expecting and (the wind) a little bit stronger."

Mr Woodman said firefighters would take advantage of cooler weather today to get ahead
of the fires but but would first have to map their position.

"In a broad sense the fires in some areas have moved quite a lot, I guess the focus
will be on assessing exactly where it is they are so we can put control lines around them.

"We have got a few days now of reasonably mild conditions and we should be able to
make some progress."

Twelve fires are still raging out of control and have so far burned out almost half
a million hectares.

AAP cmb/it

KEYWORD: BUSHFIRES VIC DAYLEAD

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