A Wildash resident and his son are homeless after a fire destroyed their home around 3pm Saturday, February 7. They were able to keep themselves safe when the fire went through but also lost vehicles in the blaze. The fire started that day on multiple sites on each side of the Old Stanthorpe Road.
Queensland Rural Fire Service Warwick group officer Alan Payne said they had 10 rural fire units, four urban fire units and aircraft on site at the Wildash fire. Around 200 hectares was burnt with some of the fires joining up. Mr Payne said it was a very dangerous situation with a lot of grass and hot, dry, conditions. The fire was also burning in areas with short grass.
Karara resident Tracey Long has asked why she and her father, who is in a wheelchair, were not given warning on the fire which broke out east of the town area at 11.30am Friday, February 6. “We were having a cup of tea at our home in Railway Street when we saw the fire approaching our yard,” she said. “I got my father and dog in the car and we drove to the Karara Pub.
“Our house was saved by the work of an urban fire brigade team which stopped the fire a metre from the house.”
Karara primary producer Graeme Fearby wasn’t so lucky as he lost 115 ewes and 15 lambs in the fire, telling us, "They were all in one corner of the paddock. I was in Warwick and heard about the fire and was heading home to move the sheep when the highway was blocked. “The aircraft dampened around the house as the fire was within 100 metres of our house.”
The value of the sheep was $25,250 and no one has sheep insured in a paddock situation.
On Friday afternoon, four power poles were damaged by fire at Karara causing a breakdown of power. The Warwick staff carried out line patrols and had power back on Friday night to all but 12 consumers. The fire is believed to have started from an angle grinder being used on a property just east of Karara.
A second Karara fire was in the Strathyre and Millmerran road areas and it was fought by rural fire teams, aircraft and a dozer pushing breaks.
By the time our newspaper headed to the presses, the fire also seen in Applethorpe, north of Stanthorpe, had been downgraded.
