Six firefighting aircraft have been deployed across Tasmania after being grounded for hours as emergency crews battle several active bushfires across the state’s south and east.
The Tasmania Fire Service confirmed on Thursday afternoon that 77 ground crews were fighting fires at Dolphin Sands, Glenlusk and Levendale, all under emergency warnings.
Aircraft were unable to fly for much of the day due to dangerous winds gusting above 100km/h.
“We’ve just deployed three aircraft from the south and also three aircraft from the north, so they’ll be working fires in the next hour or so,” Regional Fire Commander Simon Pilkington said at a 4:30pm briefing.
A total of 18 fires broke out across the southern region on Thursday, with six now resolved.
Emergency warnings have been issued for fires at Glenlusk, Dolphin Sands and Levendale, with residents told to evacuate immediately.
Pilkington had earlier said conditions were “pretty unfavourable for firefighting” due to strong winds and warm temperatures.
Pulse understands at least one house has been destroyed by fire at Dolphin Sands on the east coast.
The “devastated” homeowner, sharing a photo of the property on social media, thanked those who helped try to put the fire out.
“My partner … and I poured countless hours into this house, it was the only place that ever felt like home since I moved here 8 years ago,’ they wrote. “And now it’s gone. I’m devastated.”
The Tasmania Fire Service says it will soon get rapid impact assessment teams in to confirm exactly what has been lost.
Bureau of Meteorology forecaster Luke Johnston said conditions deteriorated beyond predictions, with temperatures slightly warmer and humidity dropping faster than expected.
“Those strong winds, combined with slightly warmer than expected temperatures, just by a couple of degrees, caused things like relative humidity to suddenly drop very low to around 20% very, very quickly,” he said.
Hobart recorded a wind gust of 102km/h around midday, while Maria Island saw 113km/h.
The conditions pushed fire danger ratings into the extreme category at some eastern and southern observation sites.
Johnston said winds would ease below damaging thresholds between 8pm and 11pm but remain gusty overnight at 50 to 80km/h.
Friday is expected to bring moderate fire danger with lower winds and temperatures, followed by a cold front on Saturday bringing rain and snow by Sunday morning.
Acting Inspector Penny Reardon from Tasmania Police confirmed two road closures were in place.
Dolphin Sands Road is closed from Cambria Drive, while Glenlusk Road is closed between 813 Molesworth Road and the Glenlusk intersection.
“If you come across a road closure, please do not enter the area,” she said. “Don’t put yourself and others at risk.”
Pilkington urged residents not to wait for emergency warnings before leaving.
“If you can reasonably remove yourself from an area, if you’ve got somewhere else to go, please take that action early,” he said.
He warned that old burns, even those weeks old, could flare up in the conditions.
“This spiky fire weather and the wind-driven events like this cause these fires to stick their head up and run,” he said.
Residents are being urged to monitor TasAlert for the latest warnings.
Pilkington said conditions were expected to ease later this afternoon.
“We are hoping that this weather will abate in the afternoon, which will then give us an opportunity to regain the initiative and start to get some control,” he said.
