The fire that occurred near the Timberlink sawmill at Bell Bay on Saturday has been contained.
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The fire started on Saturday at 5pm, when embers from the nearby controlled burns blew over to an offset of the mill.
George Town District Officer Steve Lowe said that unprecedented wind gusts caused the fire to spread.
The offset area was home to fibre residue from the fibre plant that used to inhabit the area where Timberlink now stands.
“It was several thousand cubic metres left over from the fibre plant but it's not used at all by Timberlink, but obviously it's a problem for us once it catches on fire it's very difficult to put out,” District Officer Lowe said.
District Officer Lowe said that fuel production burns are necessary to prevent severe fires from developing, and that the Timberlink mill was never in danger.
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