NSW RFS district technical officer, Karen Hedges, said 2015/16 has the potential to be busy because of the lack of forecast rainfall and current hot, dry and windy conditions.

“There were 203 call-outs, covering bush and grassfires, house fires and motor vehicle accidents over the last 12 months for the RFS,” she said.

To prepare for the busy months ahead the local brigades have been attending training to ensure skills are up-to-date.

“The brigades have been doing regular maintenance on trucks and equipment to make sure everything will work when needed. They have been attending numerous community events to raise the awareness for the public to prepare their homes and properties. Some hazard reduction burning may be occurring soon, this was delayed due to some rain,” Ms Hedges said.

She said one of the easiest ways for locals to prepare their homes, was to complete a bush fire survival plan downloaded from the RFS website (www.rfs.nsw.gov.au).

“A number of surveys have been done and an interesting statistic is the number of people who think ‘it won’t happen to me’, so people are nowhere near prepared. This is easy to understand, as we really haven’t had that many big fires in the Moree area,” she said.

“Also most people underestimate the impact and damage caused by an ember attack. “The wind can blow embers many kilometres ahead of the main fire causing more fires and landing on/in buildings and sheds, this is a major cause of house, property and stock loss.”

Ms Hedges said people burning on their properties were not always properly prepared.

“For example the break around the burn area is too narrow or some have none, not having enough water or people to help and not checking the weather forecast for the day.

“Pile burning in summer is a huge potential for an escaped burn, the timber is very dry and will burn extremely hot and again the breaks are not enough or they burn piles that are close to timbered areas. I have seen leaves in the top of a tree 20 metres from a pile burn catch alight just from the radiant heat from the fire and that was in winter,” Ms Hedges said.

Other ways residents can prepare include trimming overhanging trees and shrubs, mow the lawn and remove all the cut grass, remove material that can burn around the home (e.g. door mats, wood piles, mulch, leaves, outdoor furniture), clear and remove all the debris and leaves from the gutters around the home, prepare hoses that can reach right around the house.

“Some protective measures for the house include blocking areas where embers can enter, installing metal fly screens on windows and vents, installing metal gutter guards, direct pressure valves of gas cylinders away from the house, move garden beds from against the house, install metal fences and use stones instead of mulch,” she said.

Permits season started on October 1 and will run until March 31, 2016.

“Many brigades suspend permits in their area during harvest. It is very frustrating when they are busy harvesting their crops and they get calls to fires that have escaped from a permit burn,” Ms Hedges said.