Instant fines are on the cards for people who ignore the Northland-wide fire ban as the firefighting bill so far this year soars to $1.3million in the Far North alone.
The skyrocketing bill - and the fact some people are still lighting burn-offs and rubbish fires - has fire bossesfuming. "Some people just don't seem to get it. The fire risk across Northland is extreme," Far North principal rural fire officer Lance Johnston said. The record 150 callouts to vegetation fires in the rural Far North since the beginning of the year was "a disgrace", he said. "Costs have reached $1.3million and continue to mount. Fire crews, all of them volunteers, are exhausted. Yet the calls continue to come in spite of the fact a total fire ban has been in place since the end of December."
Mr Johnston said the council was now "vigorously pursuing" cost recovery and prosecution. Instant fines were now planned in a bid to get the message across that lighting fires in the open would not be tolerated. Lawyers are examining the council's bylaws to see what level of fines could be imposed. Mr Johnston said the danger was heightened by the drought. Low river levels meant firefighters could not pump out the quantities of water they needed and had to truck in water instead. Weather conditions in the Far North last week were similar to those which led to the devastating fires in Victoria last year. "We had 70km/h winds and temperatures exceeding relative humidity levels - the perfect conditions for combustion and an out-of-control fire storm," he said.
The maximum penalty for breaching a fire ban is a $2000 fine or six months in jail, and anyone responsible for starting a blaze can also be forced to pay firefighting costs - which can run into tens of thousands of dollars once helicopters are called in.
