The Tasmania Fire Service is reminding everyone to prepare their properties, with the 2018 bushfire season outlook predicting potentially early activity along the state’s East Coast.
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According to the outlook, released by the Bushfire and Natural Hazards Cooperative Research Centre, most of the state will experience a normal bushfire season starting in the traditional period of late spring.
A strip of the East Coast between Triabunna and Eddystone Point remains drier than average, with fires likely to start in this area earlier in the season than the rest of the state.
Chief Officer Chris Arnol said TFS was working with other fire management agencies to ensure authorities were prepared for whatever the season may bring.
“On average Tasmania experiences 1400 bushfires each summer all over the state,” he said.
“There is no escaping the fact that we live in a bushfire prone state and a 'normal' outlook means we will have bushfires.
“What's important is that we use this information released today as a trigger point for bushfire planning and preparation.”
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Mr Arnol said the TFS were expecting similar circumstances to last year, which saw early bushfire activity on the state’s East Coast due to a lack of winter rainfall.
He said people needed to understand their bushfire risks and prepare their properties accordingly, before it was too late.
“Any property you own means you also own that property's risk,” he said.
“Your home is more likely to survive a bushfire if you have prepared it properly by creating a 20 to 40 metre defendable space around your home clear of flammable material and vegetation.”
TFS has developed 100 Bushfire Protection Plans for individual communities.
Tasmanians are encouraged to visit the TFS website to check the area plans, and to use the resources available to develop a bushfire survival plan.
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