South Australia warned of another severe bushfire season
The latest bushfire outlook has warned of a heightened risk of fires across South Australia this summer.
The Bushfire and Natural Hazards Cooperative Research Centre (CRC) has released the Southern Australia Seasonal Bushfire Outlook for 2014-15.
It said South Australia could expect an above-normal fire risk for parts of the state, with the greatest risk to north of Adelaide, the Flinders and Mid North, as well as the North West Pastoral and West Coast Eyre Peninsula
The outlook has also predicted a greater-than-normal chance of fire in parts of eastern Australia, from southern Queensland, through New South Wales and into central Victoria.
Senior climatologist Darren Ray said warm weather heading into the summer months in those areas was expected to dry out already higher fuel loads.
"The above average rainfall for South Australia has fallen across the pastoral areas, the west coast, the Eyre Peninsula and over in the Flinders Ranges," Mr Ray said.
"Those areas are seeing increased fuel loads and they're the areas that have been highlighted by the outlook."
Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC chief executive officer Richard Thornton said recent rain was not likely to significantly lower the fire threat.
"The underlying rainfall deficit is so large that it means a couple of hot days and all of the wetness ... will go away," Dr Thornton said.
"The [weather] bureau into the next three to four months is basically saying we are looking at average rainfall across large parts of Australia, but a high chance of above-average temperatures, so we are not seeing a big break from some of these rainfall deficits."
SA firefighters planning for summer
In South Australia, Rob Sandford from the Country Fire Service (CFS) said the outlook helped firefighters think ahead and work on some of the challenges they may face in the coming fire danger season.
"It's about if we need to get... machinery into those areas, how are we going to do that?" Mr Sandford said.
"And similarly if we need to send firefighting resources, how are going to do that? Where are we going to stage them? How are we going to transport them? All those sorts of things."
Mr Sandford said the remoteness of some of the areas identified, like the Nullarbor, could pose problems for local firefighters.
"Whilst there may not be huge numbers of people in those areas, that poses a problem and a challenge for us about getting information with incidents that are happening there," he said.
"We employ a range of techniques and technology these days. We use satellites to monitor hotspots and actually track fires in the pastoral areas and over on the Nullarbor and the west coast."
Dr Thornton said one of the most important things in preparing for the fire season would be communication.
"There's a lot of information that needs to go out to the public," he said.
"Now is probably the right time to start doing your preparations for the fire season."
