The Andersons Creek fire in Brinerville has doubled in size in 24 hours and is now nearing 100 hectares.
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It's burning in rugged, isolated bushland in New England National Park north of the Nambucca's Killiekrankie after being started by a lightning strike on Monday evening.
An RFS Mid North Coast community newsletter issued at 5.45pm yesterday said a large air tanker laid a retardant line in front of the fire in the afternoon.
Earlier in the day their bulletin said that a National Parks & Wildlife remote area firefighting crew was on standby to winch into the area if it was safe to do so and that water bombing, which had to be halted on Tuesday due to strong winds, would recommence when conditions permitted.
"Weather conditions over the next four days are expected to assist firefighters to continue mopping up the Liberation Trail fire and to directly attack the new fires," the RFS said.
The Guyra Road fire at Ebor has joined with Carrai East and Kian Road, which has put the Bellinger Valley on notice.
Our neighbours have so far avoided being directly impacted by the most recent active fires plaguing our state.
"We're hoping to catch it back in this country here," said RFS Mid North Coast community liaison officer John Allen at the Kalang Hall meeting, pointing to the predictive modelling map that he and Superintendent Sean McArdle brought along.
Once it gets beyond the Horseshoe, that's where we're under threat.
- John Allen - RFS Mid North Coast
The danger is that if the bushfire passes beyond the road on that high ridge, gusty westerly winds could send it down into the Kalang and Thora valleys.
Of course, this could mean an increased threat for the northern fringe of the Nambucca Valley too.
"Our modelling shows that when it arrives on the Horseshoe, there's like a pinch point where the fire will funnel in, following the heavy vegetation, and then spread right into the two valleys," Supt McArdle said.
People with experience of previous fires petering out in the wet sclerophyll forest should not expect that to happen this time, they warned.
"Cool temperate rainforest is now burning. It's the dryness of the soil and the vegetation that's the factor," Mr Allen said.
"What we need to alleviate this situation is 160-200mm of rainfall. And that's not predicted for the next few months."
Asked if the firefighting agencies intended to backburn from the Horseshoe, Mr Allen said "only if required".
"We've got other control lines further back up the ridge system," he said. "And we've got contractors working on the fire trails as of today."
Supt McArdle warned that the map pictured in Fires Near Me lags behind the actual conditions, so it is not a reliable way to check how close the fire is.