Bushfires raged across Queensland over the weekend. Source: New Matilda, Wikimedia Commons
Queenslanders are being warned by emergency services of continuing bushfire conditions after a weekend of fires across the state.
Yesterday Queensland experienced four bushfires, which damaged a number of properties.
According to Queensland Fire and Emergency Services (QFES), seven districts across the state are being placed under high fire danger this week.
Glenn Bell, the Central Highlands Regional Council disaster coordinator, said that some properties were evacuated yesterday, and some “habitable structures” were destroyed.
“It’s unknown if they were actually being lived in at the time or not, that’s still being investigated,” Mr Bell said.
Mr Bell also said that the full extent of the damage done by the fires yesterday is still unknown, but that a “good review” would be carried out.
Scott Castree, QFES area commander, said that 20 to 30 people self-evacuated yesterday, with fires in the central highlands blazing through around 130 hectares.
Castree said two shed-like structures which were lived in were destroyed, along with power poles on Selma Road.
Investigations into the cause of the fire are continuing.
The small Central Highlands town of Emerald experienced the largest fire on the weekend, with emergency services battling to contain a fire that spread to roughly 2 square kilometres in size.
Sixteen crews and two waterbombing planes fought to contain the blaze, and several homes were threatened, along with a caravan park.
Local residents were issued a warning to evacuate, but this was rescinded at about 6:30pm.
A ‘prepare to leave’ warning was also issued further north in Julago, near Townsville, and in the Sunshine Coast a blaze broke out of its containment lines in the Glass House Mountains, spreading towards Beerwah.
Twenty crews, along with aircraft, were able to contain the Glass House Mountains fire, and it was then downgraded, with residents able to return to their homes.
A fire also broke out at Cedar Creek, south of Logan, but crews were able to get to the fire on time, and there were no threats to homes.
As of today, Queensland is expected to be under moderate to high fire danger for several days.
The Bureau of Meteorology predicts very high temperatures on Thursday, with 37 degrees in Emerald and Ipswich, 36 degrees in Rockhampton, 34 in Brisbane, and 32 in Bundaberg, the Sunshine Coast, and Toowoomba.
