By KATH GANNAWAY
THE CFA is urging Yarra Valley farmers, contractors and landowners to take a warning from their peers in warmer and dryer parts of the state where there has been a spate of crop fires.
Although the hay harvest has been stalled because of the wet weather in the valley and up around Marysville area, there is still plenty of hay to be cut and transported when the sun does come out again.
Ten crop fires near Horsham last Monday, 2 December sparking the warning with all blazes believed to have been caused by headers.
Chief Officer Euan Ferguson said while the CFA understood the importance of cropping and harvesting, farmers need to be aware of their local conditions and have the correct equipment with them at all times.
“While harvesting can still go ahead during the Fire Danger Period, it’s important farmers monitor the weather conditions closely throughout the day,” he said.
Mr Ferguson encouraged the use of on-site weather reading instruments to monitor the air temperature and relative humidity, average wind speed and gust strength which he said were useful tools to identify when conditions are too risky to harvest.
“The most important thing you can do is take regular breaks to clear out grass, sticks and seeds that become caught in airflow vents, stone guards and bash plates,” he said.
“It’s also important to regularly look behind you and know when to shut your machinery down – hot exhausts can easily start fires, as can sparks when machinery hits stones.”
Mr Ferguson said safety should be the first priority for anyone working in agriculture and said it was a good time to check that on-board firefighting equipment was in good working order.
Among a number of safety tips to ensure a safe and fire-free summer harvest, the CFA includes checking for straw or grass build-up regularly, have a fire-resistent shield behind the exhaust, double check all spark arrestors, avoid driving motorbikes through long, dry grass and leave the angle grinder in the cupboard on bad days.
Farmers, contractors and landholders can find fire safety advice and guidelines online at cfa.vic.gov.au/farming or call 1800 240 667 to request a free copy of CFA’s booklet On the Land.
