Cool change heading for Melbourne, but fire danger remains
In Mildura, temperatures are forecast to remain in the mid to high 30s until at least Monday. On Tuesday, the regional city reached a top of 41 degrees. Elsewhere, Shepparton peaked at 39 degrees and Bendigo hit 38 degrees.
Severe thunderstorms were possible across most of Victoria on Tuesday, except for the south-west, far east and north-east.
Overnight there were 146,000 lightning strikes across Victoria, with about 19,000 of them hitting the ground.
The State Emergency Service said it had responded to more than 1100 calls for assistance due to building damage and fallen trees across Victoria since 9am on Sunday.
About 1700 properties statewide remained without electricity as of Tuesday afternoon as energy companies continued repairing faults.
Emergency alert downgraded in Grampians as two new fires flare
Before the cool change in Melbourne, a watch-and-act warning was issued for Beveridge, Eden Park, Whittlesea, Woodstock and Yan Yean to the city’s north, as a grass fire flared up near Grants Road, Woodstock, just after midday. However, it was brought under control by 1pm.
North-west of Melbourne near Gisborne, a new fire started in Lerderderg State Park around 11am. However, it had stopped spreading by 12.28pm.
Bushfire warnings in Victoria’s west remained largely unchanged on Tuesday morning, until the lone emergency warning in the Grampians was downgraded just after 10am.
Mirranatwa, a small farming hamlet nestled between two ridges at the southern end of the national park, is now under a watch-and-act warning as the Victoria Range fire burns out of control.
The NSW firefighters’ vehicle was engulfed by fire in the Little Desert blaze on Monday.
“The spread of the bushfire has slowed for now, but the situation can change at any time,” the warning said.
Meanwhile, near the South Australian border, the Little Desert fire remained under a watch-and-act alert on Tuesday morning, a day after three NSW firefighters narrowly escaped the fire as it engulfed their vehicle.
Much of the Little Desert National Park is in the West Wimmera Shire, which has endured bushfire emergencies in two of the past three years.
Mayor Tim Meyer said while his community was used to big fires, they could still use support.
The Little Desert fire has burnt more than 90,000 hectares, or two-thirds of the national park.Credit: Steve Hobbs
“We just need the resources [to fight fires], that’s the main thing, and air support is a big part of that. Any improvements or further developments for our airports across the shire are appreciated,” he said.
Meyer said road closures in the area affected day-to-day life for residents, such as in Kaniva, where the pharmacy had been unable to get medication for several days.
In the Otway Ranges, a watch-and-act alert remained for bushfires at Hordern Vale and Cape Horn, just east of Apollo Bay on the Great Ocean Road, on Tuesday. However, the popular tourist road stayed open.
On Tuesday, Premier Jacinta Allan said financial support was already available to fire-affected Grampians communities.
Premier Jacinta Allan on Tuesday morning.Credit: AAP
“We are still very much in an emergency phase,” she said.
“We will continue to support the work of our emergency services and the volunteers who have been working for weeks now keeping these communities safe … we will need to continue to work and support and listen to the local community as the fire risk eases, but it hasn’t eased yet.”
