Firefighters have successfully extinguished a dangerous 200 by 300 metre blaze in Sydney’s south, but crews are still on scene to mop up other secondary fires.
Several fire crews worked on Sunday to contain a blaze that reignited near an equestrian centre in Sydney’s Malabar Headlands, after firefighters had previously worked to put out two fires that started early Sunday morning.
Fire and Rescue were alerted to the fire near Malabar Headlands at approximately 12.18pm on Sunday, with reports that flames were engulfing the South East Equestrian Club located at the Anzac Rifle Range.
Six trucks were deployed to both the equestrian club and the surrounding area to fight the fire.
Superintendent Jim O’Carroll, speaking to NewsWire at 3:20 p.m., confirmed the blaze had been contained but there were still seven fire engines on the scene.
“The area that was on fire has been extinguished and crews are now mopping up some hot spots,” he said.
Fires Near Me previously called the blaze “out of control” and residents were told to monitor conditions in case the situation changed.
Firefighters had previously been called to the scene on Sunday night and extinguished a small grass fire in the area shortly after 2am and again at around 10.30am on Sunday.
Firefighters were alerted to the blaze near Malabar Headlands at around 12.18pm on Sunday (crews at the scene pictured)
Firefighters continue to battle blazes on Sydney’s northern beaches
Superintendent O’Carroll said the blaze’s “extremely inaccessible” location made it difficult for firefighters to put it out, leading to a battle that lasted several hours.
There were no street hydrants available as a water source, he said, so fire crews had set up a “water relay” between trucks to bring water to the blaze.
“We couldn’t get the trucks there,” he said.
Although the fires were considered low-level, they posed a risk to nearby horse stables.
“At its highest point, it was a 300-meter by 200-meter fire, at its highest point,” he said. – at its highest point
“He started to crash into the fence of the equestrian center, so we put a couple of fire trucks there to protect him.”
No property was damaged in the fire, he said.
Eight fire trucks and drones were deployed on Sunday morning to help assess the extent of the fires.
Although the source has not yet been determined, a Fire and Rescue spokesman said windy conditions and high temperatures exacerbated fire-prone conditions.
Firefighters were first called to a small grass fire at around 2am on Sunday. Pictured here, the South East Equestrian Club is under threat.
Residents on Sydney’s northern beaches were warned to take shelter on Saturday after out-of-control fires sparked by risk reduction burns threatened nearby properties.
Rural Fire Service Inspector Ben Shepherd said strong winds carried embers beyond their containment lines and pushed the fires eastwards.
No homes are believed to have been damaged by the fires and the emergency warning was downgraded to an advisory in the afternoon.
Superintendent O’Carroll said the situation will soon be turned over to the National Park Service.