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A scrub fire broke out off Flea Castle Road near Redbanks at Nepean Bay on Kangaroo Island on Friday afternoon. The initial call at 3pm on December 4 to the Country Fire Service was a grass fire started by farm machinery. Kangaroo Island fire crews were able “contain” the Nepean Bay/Flea Castle Road fire overnight and by Saturday morning, December 5, the fire was still at Advice level. There was back burning conducted overnight from the new Oceanview Eco Villas back toward the fire. Six CFS trucks and crews, and of course the farm fire units, remained on Saturday. Rain briefly fell over the fire ground on Saturday morning but gale force winds are due this afternoon. Three Air Tractor 802 F (AT 802F) fire-bombing air tankers from Aerotech and a CFS spotter plane flew over from Adelaide in quick response. They managed 20 drops before dark, refilling with SES assistance at the Turkey Lane airstrip near Parndana. The aircraft returned to the mainland as there is were refueling facilities at the Kangaroo Island Airport at Kingscote. By dark the fire could be seen from Kingscote jetty kicking on. There were 10 CFS, National Parks appliances and multiple farm fire units working the fire on Friday evening, but the winds were tricky with reports of gully influence and gusts to 34 knots. The CFS Kingscote brigade firefighters only two days prior were called in to deal with an escaped pile burn in town. See: Escaped pile burn at Kingscote prompts CFS warning KI deputy group officer Rodney Lade at the scene said the fire resulted from the flare up of pile burn on the vacant block off Seaview Drive. That burn was lit two days ago just before the start of the fire season, but appears not to have been fully extinguished, he said. There was concern it could have crossed over toward the Bullock Track after trees and grass along Seaview Drive caught fire. Mr Lade said don’t leave your burn offs till late in the season, and any burns now on KI and anywhere in SA required a permit, which was unlikely to be granted.
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A highlights package of the scrub battle
A scrub fire broke out off Flea Castle Road near Redbanks at Nepean Bay on Kangaroo Island on Friday afternoon.
The initial call at 3pm on December 4 to the Country Fire Service was a grass fire started by farm machinery.
Kangaroo Island fire crews were able “contain” the Nepean Bay/Flea Castle Road fire overnight and by Saturday morning, December 5, the fire was still at Advice level.
There was back burning conducted overnight from the new Oceanview Eco Villas back toward the fire.
Six CFS trucks and crews, and of course the farm fire units, remained on Saturday.
Rain briefly fell over the fire ground on Saturday morning but gale force winds are due this afternoon.
Three Air Tractor 802 F (AT 802F) fire-bombing air tankers from Aerotech and a CFS spotter plane flew over from Adelaide in quick response.
They managed 20 drops before dark, refilling with SES assistance at the Turkey Lane airstrip near Parndana.
The aircraft returned to the mainland as there is were refueling facilities at the Kangaroo Island Airport at Kingscote.
By dark the fire could be seen from Kingscote jetty kicking on.
There were 10 CFS, National Parks appliances and multiple farm fire units working the fire on Friday evening, but the winds were tricky with reports of gully influence and gusts to 34 knots.
Air tanker still series
The CFS Kingscote brigade firefighters only two days prior were called in to deal with an escaped pile burn in town.
KI deputy group officer Rodney Lade at the scene said the fire resulted from the flare up of pile burn on the vacant block off Seaview Drive.
That burn was lit two days ago just before the start of the fire season, but appears not to have been fully extinguished, he said.
There was concern it could have crossed over toward the Bullock Track after trees and grass along Seaview Drive caught fire.
Mr Lade said don’t leave your burn offs till late in the season, and any burns now on KI and anywhere in SA required a permit, which was unlikely to be granted.
Escaped pile burn at Kingscote
