Central Otago's Fight Against Fire Risks with Bobby Lamont from Fire and Emergency New Zealand

In this podcast, host Brent Harbour chats  with Bobby Lamont from Fire and Emergency New Zealand, Central Otago, who brings the fire risks to the forefront that threaten our region. Amidst a total fire ban, Bobby shares insights on the environmental factors, dry grass, fierce Nor'westers, and the need for sustained rainfall and cooler conditions to dampen any danger  ahead. This episode is a call to action for every community member in Central Otago. 

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Transcript

Brent Harbour: 0:02

The Outlet, the voice of Central. Welcome to the Outlet. I'm your host, brent Harbour. In this podcast, I catch up with Bobby from Fire and Emergency, new Zealand, central Otago to talk through the current fire risk in the region. We discussed the likelihood of that situation changing, the causes of unintentional fires and the issue of bonfires near water sources, plus the key message FENZ wants to get out to everybody in the region.

Brent Harbour: 0:37

The Outlet, the voice of Central, the prospector Alexandra has established itself as a staple on the New Zealand mountain bike scene. It's created by Alexandra Locals, james Williamson and Phil Oliver. Now the race is designed by mountain bikers for mountain bikers and is on from the 8th to the 10th of March. All the info and links can be found on the Central App. Click on Things to Do and then what's on? Bobby from Fire and Emergency, new Zealand, central Otago chats us through the current fire risk in the region. We look at the causes of unintentional fires, talk about bonfires near water sources and uncover the key message FENZ is working to spread throughout the community. G'day, bobby. Welcome to the Outlet Podcast. What is the fire risk situation in Central Otago at the moment, and is that likely to change any time soon?

Bobby Lamont: 1:35

So currently in Central Otago we are, we're still in a total fire ban, so this means no open air fires are to be lit, and this is driven by our fire danger indices, which include the amount of available fuels to burn, the moisture levels within these fuels, soil moisture levels and predicted rates of fire spread within our landscape. All of these are affected by temperatures and winds and within Central Otago, as people would have seen, we've got large amounts of available fuel to burn long, dry, ranked grass. We have had a wee bit of rain, and that provides a wee bit of relief. So with these Norwest winds that keep coming through, that moisture gets sucked out by the winds pretty quickly. So, with that being said, I'm not expecting that fire season to change within the next six to eight weeks. As long as those Norwest El Nino winds keep coming through, the next six to eight weeks will at least we'll be staying into a total fire ban.

Brent Harbour: 2:26

Like you said, you've had a bit of rain, but it's going to take more than that. So what exactly needs to happen for that to change, Bobby?

Bobby Lamont: 2:33

Basically, we need a sustained period of rain into the cooler days, cooler overnights, which we're starting to see a little bit now, a little bit early if you ask me, but cooler overnight periods. There our relative humidity which plays a large part of that, so that's the moisture within the air. We'll see more of that higher humidity overnight which provides more moisture into those fuels. Basically, we just need more consistent rain over a long period of time for any movement of that fire season.

Brent Harbour: 3:00

So how have people in Central been with respect to request not to light fires Bobby?

Bobby Lamont: 3:04

Well, overall Central Otago are generally very, very conscientious and aware of the fire danger and I think that's partly due to the communities just probably still being aware of what happened in 1999 in Alexandra with those large fires. That behaviour is still. We're still seeing it today. So people generally are very, very aware of the risks, the fire danger and the risk of spread. So, pretty happy with Central Otago communities overall. Yeah, every year I say it, but I just thank them again for their efforts and their awareness and consciousness of that fire danger.

Brent Harbour: 3:37

Now, unintentional fires do also happen at this time of year, especially in the agricultural sector. Can you explain how some of these fires start, bobby?

Bobby Lamont: 3:44

So, within the agricultural sector, using fire as part of a land clearing tool is an essential part of quite a lot of our property industry. So within the farming sectors. So the burning of stubble after it's been harvested helps to remove some pests or whatever within the soil and just promote new growth and whatnot. So that's a little part of it. Just ginging or plowing up the paddocks can have an effect and we have seen it through Central Otago, the Ida Valley, omecao areas, even up in Tarras where disking can. If the disc strike a rock, it can create a spark and that has caused fires in the past. Generally speaking, the farmers tend to get on top of that pretty quickly. They've got plows and whatnot already that they're using and they can round up the fire pretty quickly. That doesn't always work, as we saw a pigeon belly in 2019, a spark from disking, and that has some pretty big effects. But so I think within the agricultural sector, most, if not all, of our farmers are very well aware of this and do a really good job in terms of putting things in place to try and mitigate it. Obviously, things happen occasionally where it doesn't quite go to plan. Yeah, also mowing people mowing, especially this time of year we would ask people to. If they're mowing paddocks or cutting paddocks, do it in the morning and when there's still a bit of moisture about, perhaps a bit of a dew, and that fire danger level is as low. It would generally be as low as it would be before lunchtime, before sort of 11am. In between 3-5 is our peak periods for fire danger. That's when the humidity is at its lowest, temperature is generally at its highest and we get those afternoon winds as well, so that can add to a higher fire danger.

Bobby Lamont: 5:20

We have seen some fireworks over this holiday period as well that have caused fires or bonfires. We don't want to be the fun police, but we do ask people just to have a little bit of awareness when they're wanting to let off fireworks. We have a section 55 in act in Notargo at the moment and I think it's mid-South Canterbury also which prohibits the use of fireworks and lanterns just due to the fire danger levels at the moment. So we'd ask people just to go onto our website, wwwcheckitsalrightnz. It's pretty intuitive. You just type in your address of what type of fire you want to do with that a bonfire or a barbecue or fireworks and it'll tell you what your fire season is in that location. It'll give you handy tips around the wind how to do it safely, but basically tells you whether you're able to do that activity or not.

Brent Harbour: 6:07

Now you've had a few callouts to central fires, mainly over the Christmas and New Year period. Has it been more than usual, and what were some of the fires that you had to attend to?

Bobby Lamont: 6:17

To be honest, the summer season, I think we're probably on average about the same or maybe a little bit less in terms of callouts. A few of them have been Mississippi 4 mowing mowing paddocks, just in those peak day times which has created a spark. There were all accidental fires. Obviously. We've had, as I say, a couple of fireworks. There was a fire up and Clyde by the Rowing Club that was started from, accidentally started from fireworks. There was a fire up in Omakau from mowing. So, generally speaking, I think we're probably on the low average scale of calls for this fire season, which is fantastic, but, yeah, mainly agricultural or fireworks or mod fires.

Brent Harbour: 6:55

Now speaking of bonfires. So people are sort of lighting bonfires on riverbeds. Is this still a no-no? And do you think people do it because they go? Oh, you know, it's next to water, that's fine.

Bobby Lamont: 7:05

Yeah, absolutely, and that is a probably a big perception of when, next to a body of water, surely we can light a fire. The first thing that anyone that's lighting a fire needs to understand is that you need to get the land on as permission, or the person or the people or the business that's managing it. So, down by the rivers, that's controlled by the regional council and you can go through the regional council and they can talk you through whether that's a good spot to burn or not. But initially, again, we like to push our people or the public through to that check. It's all right website Check on that. Are we in the right fires using to be lighting a fire? And then there's a suggestion there that you need to have the permission of the landowner before you light a fire as well.

Brent Harbour: 7:44

So what is one of the key messages that Fire and Emergency New Zealand wants to get across?

Bobby Lamont: 7:49

It's awareness around what to do pre-lighting a fire, which the website is a fantastic resource for that. Go on there and check whether you can light the fire. Be aware of the conditions, even in the winter months. If you're burning off your garden waste or having a bit of a clearing burn in a lifestyle property, go on to that check. It's all right website and it's got some fantastic advice. It has forecast weather predictions as well. Even three to four days after you've had a fire, if there are sustained winds, that can reignite your fire as well. So be aware of the weather, be aware of what you're burning, where you're burning, and go through our check it's all right website just to get some really good advice and see what the fire season's currently at.

Brent Harbour: 8:28

You think to yourself it's pretty obvious, but I mean it's good to get some advice. So what should people do if they do see a fire or they're a bit concerned about fire risk?

Bobby Lamont: 8:36

Yeah, absolutely, and, as I said earlier, the central Otago community are fantastic with this. If you see you're concerned about a fire, call triple one immediately and we'll send our crews out to have a look at it. If it's a good fire in terms of it's burning safely and the person's doing the right thing, we'll let you carry on, no action required. But if you need help, our brigades are out there to give assistance. We're required.

Brent Harbour: 8:57

Hey. Well, Bobby, it's been fantastic talking to you. Thank you so much for all the work you do, all the very best and I'm sure we'll catch up again soon.

Bobby Lamont: 9:03

Yeah, absolutely, I appreciate your time. Brent cheers .

Brent Harbour: 9:08

Here's a couple of jobs listed on the central app and current as of Feb 16th. Otago community hospice are looking for a counsellor permanent part-time. You'll be responsible for providing bereavement and grief counselling through face-to-face, online, group and individual sessions, and Subway Alexandra are looking for a sandwich artist. You'll need a positive attitude, ability to work in a fast-paced environment and excellent customer service skills. You can find these jobs and many more by clicking on the jobs button on the central app, on Buzzsprout, spotify, apple, wherever you get your podcasts. The Outlet, the voice of Central. Thanks for listening to this episode of the Outlet. Now, if you have a story or an interview you think should be featured on the Outlet podcast, get in touch by clicking on the contact us button on the central app. The Outlet is produced and published by the central app and supported with funding from the New Zealand Public Interest Journalism Fund. The Outlet is available on the main page of the central app and wherever you get your podcasts.