Total fire ban to be in place for the Derwent Valley

A total fire ban has been issued by the Tasmania Fire Service (TFS) for the south of the state - including the Derwent Valley - for this weekend, with dangerous conditions looming after days of hot and dry weather.

With damaging winds forecast for Saturday and peak wind gusts expected to reach up to 100kmh, the total fire ban will be in place from 2am Saturday until 2am Sunday.

TFS deputy Matt Lowe said, "measures were needed to reduce risk”, with extreme fire danger forecast for the Furneaux Islands and the East Coast on Saturday.

A high fire danger risk is also expected for the central north, north-east, Midlands, upper Derwent Valley, South-East and Central Plateau districts.

All open fires are prohibited, with all TFS teams plus aerial firefighting resources on standby as people are urged to stay alert and report smoke immediately.

Warnings come with Tasmania’s aerial firefighting fleet now fully operational with 15 aircraft ready to respond to bushfires within 15 minutes during what is now the peak fire period of summer.

The firefighting fleet includes six new firebombing planes that can land on water, which arrived in the State on Monday.

These aircraft also join eight helicopters and a surveillance plane, which have been in service since mid-December.

All are based at Cambridge and Launceston airports, with Fire Minister Felix Ellis saying aircraft are playing an increasingly important role in Tasmania’s firefighting efforts.

“With our rapid wave attack focus, it’s about making sure that we can knock down the bushfires as quickly as we can, both with air capability and on the ground.”

The fleet includes firebombing helicopters, amphibious planes capable of scooping water from the Derwent River and a brand-new intelligence-gathering aircraft.

Parks and Wildlife Service fire operations manager Richard Dakin confirmed that campfire bans have been in place for a while on the North and East coasts, with Lightning a significant concern, especially in parks.

Sustainable Timber Tasmania has 40 firefighters on standby, along with detection cameras operating around the clock.

Mr Ellis urged all Tasmanians to do their part by preparing bushfire plans and downloading the Tas Alert app.