http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/man-dies-homes-destroyed-as-bushfires-rage-across-three-states/2006/12/14/1165685828198.html
Man dies, homes destroyed as bushfires rage out of control
Daniella Miletic, David Braithwaite and Andrew Darby
December 15, 2006
THE worst fears of country Victorians were realised last night as the
Gippsland bushfires destroyed houses and a man believed to have been
helping to fight the fires died.
There were unconfirmed reports of up to 12 houses lost in Toongabbie,
north of Traralgon and the nearby town of Cowwarr.
"I've heard reports of up to about a dozen [houses lost] but I stress
that's unconfirmed," said Chris Rose of the Department of
Sustainability and Environment.
Nine properties are also said to have been lost south of Jamieson,
including four at A1 Settlement and five at Gaffneys Creek.
The towns of Glengarry, Heyfield, Glenmaggie, Newry and Maffra West
Upper were also under threat from a fire that had started yesterday at
Coopers Creek, south-east of Erica.
Residents were stranded, with all roads blocked by the flames.
An ambulance spokesman said the man who died fell off the back of a
trailer west of Heyfield and was run over by a following vehicle.
In NSW, cooler conditions brought relief to the Goobragandra valley
near Tumut last night, although a fire that swept 13,000 hectares was
still burning. Light rain fell nearby, giving firefighters some respite
and the area escaped expected high winds that had prompted fears 70
homes might be threatened.
Seven householders in the Argalong and Goobragandra districts decided
to move yesterday, but most were staying to defend their homes.
A spokesman for the Rural Fire Service, Peter Dyce, said 340
firefighters, 18 aircraft, 80 tankers and 18 earth movers had been
called in. "They have been doing a lot of backburning, which has kept
the fire within containment lines," he said.
Most of the land burnt was mature state forest pine plantation.
The Coopers Creek fire in Victoria, which is thought to have been
deliberately lit, had burnt 7000 hectares.
A Toongabbie resident, Kate Smith, said she believed a neighbour's
property had been burnt, although her newly built home and property
were spared.
"The paddock right next to us was unbelievable. It was just roaring and
we were standing there, but we got nothing," she said.
"It felt like a war zone, with all the choppers and sirens."
Most of the larger fires in Victoria have merged into three blazes,
including the main fire in the alpine region, the Tawonga Gap fire and
the Green Hills fire. The Department of Sustainability and Environment
believes some 420,000 hectares have been burnt.
Tasmania's rampaging east coast bushfire jumped containment lines
yesterday and encircled the small holiday settlement of Four Mile
Creek. The fire cut off any road escape and residents took refuge on
the beach.
with AAP
.
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