Caution urged as permit burns return

By Owen Sinclair

Mar 21, 2025

Police are urging landowners to be careful when conducting private burns. Photo by Ray Sizer

Victoria Police is urging landowners to remain within the conditions of their permit when conducting burns on their property.

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Senior sergeant Nathan Ractliffe said the risk of out-of-control permit burns was a massive concern.

“We need landowners to know that these fires can get out of hand,” he said.

“It’s a risk to the community, to road users, and a risk to peoples’ livelihoods, businesses and critical infrastructure like power lines.”

A number of call-outs were made to the CFA last year after permits burns became out of control.

“We’ve had a number of controlled burns get out of control, which means the CFA is paged, and property damage may occur,” Sen Sgt Ractliffe said.

“Ultimately, we can deem that there may be criminality or negligence of the landowner not having kept their burns under control.”

Under the Country Fire Authority Act 1958, penalties for allowing an open-air fire to escape during a declared Fire Danger Period can include fines of up to $23,710, 12 months’ imprisonment, or both.

Penalties double if the escape occurs on a Total Fire Ban Day.

The reminder comes after a growing number of reports of CFA brigades being called to attend permit burns after callers mistook them for out-of-control fires.

CFA District 22 Commander Rod Railton said the issue of permit burns mistaken as uncontrolled fires by the public was complex.

“We don’t want to stop people reporting fires. But they need to be aware that, at the moment, permits are in force,” he said.

All registered permit burns are recorded by the CFA so that emergency call-takers know the address of a legal burn-off.

But if a caller knows only the general location of a fire and not its precise address, the CFA is legally required to send a brigade out regardless.

It means that response times to actual out-of-control fires are lengthened.

“We’re calling our volunteers out unnecessarily at all times of the night, and when we’re responding to these fires it lessens our coverage to areas that actually may have a fire,” Mr Railton said.

There are ways to determine whether a fire is registered or not.

For instance, a vehicle with a flashing amber light will be at the scene of a registered burn.

Currently, the light-up time for the district is 6pm each day.

That time, which the CFA reviews with senior firefighters each week, will be brought forward earlier and earlier as daylight saving comes to an end next month.

Register a planned burn off by visiting the Fire Permits Victoria website at https://tinyurl.com/dxbkbc7k