A Launceston man has been charged with two counts of unlawfully setting fire to property after police investigated a string of deliberately lit scrub fires at Cataract Gorge.
Launceston detectives will allege the 35-year-old deliberately lit two separate vegetation fires in the gorge between January 1 and March 5 this year.
The man is expected to appear in the Launceston Magistrates Court on April 29.
The charges follow an investigation by a multi-agency taskforce involving Tasmania Police, the Tasmania Fire Service, the Environment Protection Authority and Launceston City Council.
The taskforce was established at the start of the fire season and has implemented “targeted initiatives” aimed at tackling suspicious fires across the Launceston area.
Investigations into other suspicious blazes in the region are continuing.
Cataract Gorge, one of northern Tasmania’s most popular tourist attractions, has been hit by a series of fires in recent months.
In October 2025, two fires broke out at either end of the gorge within days of each other, requiring helicopter water-bombing and prompting an investigation by fire authorities.
Another blaze on the southern escarpment in late November 2025 again required aerial firefighting support.
More recently, a fire at the Zig Zag Reserve within the gorge on February 6 was brought under control by a water-bombing aircraft and ground crews.
