ag-20feb2013

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Wednesday, February 20, 2013

FIRST PUBLISHED SEPTEMBER 27, 1879

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Burn-off jumps fire breaks By Sam Morton and Myles Hume Mid Canterbury firefighters attended the biggest scrub fire of the season at a Chertsey Kyle Road farm yesterday, where sparks from a controlled burnoff were believed to have ignited a fire outside the fire break. Four fire engines and five tankers attended the blaze which spread down a 400 metre tree line, destroying a hay stack in the paddock. The fire has highlighted the real dangers of burn-offs, as the fire spread out of control in a farmer’s paddock, who thought he did everything right. And he hasn’t been alone. In the past 48 hours, the Ashburton, Rakaia and Methven volunteer fire brigades have attended nine scrub fires between them, following reports from the community that the fires have been out of control. The patience of Mid Canterbury firefighters is being tested, as a growing number of vegetation fires reported around the district are often false alarms. However, the brigade chiefs believe the dry summer has upped the level of caution around the community and recent large bush fires in Prebbleton and West Melton have added to the concern. “It’s a catch-22 really, you’re damned if you do, damned if you don’t,” Ashburton chief fire officer Alan Burgess said. “We don’t want to be telling people not to ring the brigade if they see smoke, but I guess what we are saying is to err on the side of caution. If you have any doubt, then let us know, but if you think it’s innocent enough, then make that judgement.” The Ashburton District Council has imposed a restricted fire season, meaning strict criteria has to be met by farmers to light burn-offs and no fires are permitted to be lit in any urban areas at any time. The Chertsey farm owner told the Guardian he drove around and checked for hot-spots after the burn-off, but claimed a small twister carried sparks into the blue gum tree line. “I feel sick about it, wouldn’t you?” he said. “Not so much about the danger, but it just spoils your day.” Meanwhile. Methven chief fire officer Selwyn Allred said the brigade has been dealing with a handful of scrub fires this year, but believes the number of callouts is “no more than usual”. He praised the majority of the community for their understanding of correct burn-off practices, but encouraged others to familiarise themselves with the meaning of “restricted” fire season. “Some people do jump to conclusions very quickly and before you know it, a call has been made to the brigade without any further knowledge. “At this time of year, it’s almost expected to have these callouts coming through.” Mr Allred said. “It’s all part of the job, but I think in a lot of the cases, if people investigated a little closer, they would feel there is no need for the service of the brigade and time and resources would be saved. “It’s a case-by-case and I guess we would rather hear about a potential out of control fire early, before it’s too late. Ultimately though, it comes down to com-

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Principal takes bill worries to the House By Myles Hume

Photo Tetsuro Mitomo 190213-TM-083

Firefighters battle a wild blaze at a Chertsey Kyle Road farm. The fire was sparked by a controlled burn-off in a nearby paddock.

Photo Erin Tasker Photo Tetsuro Mitomo 190213-TM-100

Mayfield fire crews attend to a callout at Shepherds Bush Road about 3.30pm. The fire was permitted. mon sense,” he said. Mr Allred insisted farmers should be setting down a fire break, surrounding the area of the burn-off. “Some farmers still see benefits in getting their new crop in the ground and that’s none of our business, that’s their decision. “However, we have seen a few burn-offs creep past their fire breaks and then that’s when it becomes our business. “Farmers should have water on hand and should be monitoring the situation at all times,” he said.

Permitted fire: A burn-off on Wakanui Road on Monday looks to be out of control, but it’s not. The farmer had adhered to all fire regulations and the brigade was not required.

A pupil who was recently stood down for taking a pouch of tobacco to school backs up Grant McMillan’s decision to take his concerns over the Education Amendment Bill to Parliament. The Ashburton College principal flew to Wellington last night and will present his 21-page submission to a select committee in opposition to the Education Amendment Bill this morning. The bill proposes to limit the search and seizure powers of school staff when they believe pupils hold drugs, alcohol, weapons and other prohibited paraphernalia in school grounds. Mr McMillan has been a strong opponent of the bill, which he believes could leave schools with no choice but to expel pupils who refused to co-operate with staff when they had a suspected banned item on them. He pointed to an incident last week when a pupil was stood down after college staff told the person to hand over their bag, suspecting there was the tobacco pouch inside. The pupil handed over their bag to college staff where the pouch was found. “But in a situation where we ask them to hand over their bag and they say ‘no I don’t have to’ we will turn around and say ‘right are you refusing to pass over your bag?’ and they say ‘yes’ then we will have no choice but to suspend them,” Mr McMillan said. “It removes a whole lot of options to keep the kid in school while they deal with their problems, options that parents would like to see used.” Under the proposed bill, schools would not have the power to search bags, but instead could only investigate school property such as lockers and desks. Mr McMillan made the decision to back his submission in Parliament to reinforce his six main concerns and to be on hand to answer questions. His main point will be built around what particular harm or effect prompted the Ministry of Education to make a change and if there was any particular issue at all. “I hope it makes an impact, this bill appears to be written by someone just on their desk top, I hope talking about what the effect could be day-to-day will make a difference.” He believed there were several principals opposing the amendment.

FIRE REGULATIONS Restricted fire season break. and the person lighting the fire time. - The prevailing wind at the time - A portable water supply sufficient must stay in attendance until the - It is recommended a cellphone be shall not exceed 15km per hour. to suppress any wildfire that may fire is completely out. on site for early warning should - Check weather forecast to show result from the controlled burn, and - Regular patrolling of the fire perimthe controlled burn escape or get settled weather for at least 24 a means of delivery for that water eter is to be conducted wherever out of control, requiring the fire hours. is to be on site for the duration of practical and safe. service. - The controlled burn shall be conthe burn, and must remain on site - No fires are to be lit or allowed to - The person lighting the fire should ducted during the hours of daylight until the fire is completely out. burn when the smoke is likely to have current insurances for public only. - In all cases constant supervision cause a nuisance to neighbours or liability and fire suppression in - The area to be burnt shall be fully is required. It is recommended a a hazard to traffic – no fires should place. surrounded by a continuous fire minimum of two adults be present be lit in any urban areas, at any Source: Ashburton District Council Grant McMillan

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