The 2023-24 Summer Fire Season arrived early and is now causing concern

 

By late yesterday afternoon the NSW Rural Fire Service had 115 incidents on its online interactive fire map.

All were bushfires or grassfires, with two listed as Emergency Warning - Out Of Control (Bega Valley & Cessnock).

Bushfires at Coolagolite on the NSW South Coast. CREDIT:JAMES BRICKWOOD. The Sydney Morning Herald, 3 October 2023

In the Northern Rivers region there were 7 fires in the Clarence Valley LGA, one in Richmond Valley LGA, one in Kyogle LGA and one in Tweed LGA.

Having burnt since Friday 29 September, the Richmond Valley bushfire at Northern Boundary Trail, Evans Head, had entered Bundjalung National Park and, by yesterday afternoon covered est. 1,235ha. 

Burning near to the unexploded bomb area of the RAAF air weapons range, it also came too close for comfort to houses in the small coastal village of Evans Head.

Flames lit up the night sky over the small coastal town of Evans Head on the NSW north coast.(Supplied: Allyson Cuskelly). ABC News, 3 October 2023

At 6pm, there are 86 fires burning, with 29 not yet contained. There are currently over 1300 firefighters and incident management specialists working to contain these fires. Extreme and high fire danger has been forecast tomorrow, with 3 TOBANs declared. https://t.co/SwFG8PzKTA pic.twitter.com/d6P3CcVSPT

— NSW RFS (@NSWRFS) October 3, 2023

Fire Danger Ratings and Total Fire Bans in NSW can be checked at:

https://www.rfs.nsw.gov.au/fire-information/fdr-and-tobans

In the early hours of Wednesday 4 October the Coolgolite fire ground in the Bega Valley had grown to 4,529ha and fire had broken out on Goodwood Island in the lower reaches of the Clarence River in northern NSW. However the number of active bush or grass fires across the state had fallen to 85 by 1:20am.