South-west residents are being urged to prepare their properties well before the start of bushfire season.
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Warrnambool CFA station officer Troy Cleverley said fire restrictions were set to commence for East Gippsland Shire this month.
"That's a lot earlier than we would ordinarily see here in Victoria," he said.
"The seasonal outlook is for another hot, dry summer. You've only got to look at what's happening in NSW and QLD and we are only at the start of spring."
Parts of Queensland and New South Wales are battling large bushfires in unprecedented conditions for those states at this time of year.
"That should be the indicator for everyone to start thinking pre-summer and preparing their properties," Mr Cleverley said
"We can't be complacent, just because it's green doesn't mean it's going to stay that way."
Mr Cleverley said fire restrictions were expected to start in the south-west in early December.
"If things go as they have done in recent years, fire restrictions will probably come into force on December 1 unless, as per Gippsland, they declare it earlier," he said.
"In saying that, it has been a lot dryer in that part of the state than here, so there is more risk."
Mr Cleverley said residents should monitor the CFA website as well as The Standard for all fire danger period declarations.
In the meantime, he said the community should start preparing their properties to minimise the risk of grass and bushfires.
"The community needs to be fire ready early," he said.
"Keeping your grass down is especially important. We're coming into that period where the council will start having rangers out look at properties and issuing notices to those who aren't cutting their grass.
"It's about minimising that grass fire risk, monitoring the weather and looking after each other, particularly our older relatives.
"CFA have a lot of programs in place and a lot of information online, so if people need any guidance they can just go online or give us a call."
Once the fire danger period starts, the window to conduct burn-offs without a permit is closed.
To keep your burn-off safe and legal:
- Check fire restrictions with your local council and register your burn on 1800 668 511.
- Check and monitor weather conditions - particularly wind.
- To avoid unnecessary calls to emergency services, notify your neighbours beforehand.
- Leave a three-metre fire break, free from flammable materials around the burn
- Have sufficient equipment and water to stop the fire spreading.
- Never leave a burn-off unattended - stay for its entire duration.
- If your burn-off gets out of control, call '000' immediately.
To find out more about getting ready for the fire season visit www.cfa.vic.gov.au or call 1800 226 226.
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