Perth fire recap: Wanneroo bushfire controlled as heatwave conditions ease for firefighters

This will be our last blog post for the evening.

The Wandoo Camp is no longer under imminent threat and has been downgraded to a Watch and Act in line with the rest of the Pannawonica townsite.

That fire is still out of control and unpredictable.

There is still a Watch and Act in place for Wanneroo, as that fire is contained but not controlled.

There has been no update to the severe weather warning for the lower west and southwest districts and expected conditions remain the same.

We hope the remainder of your night is uneventful, stay safe and thanks for following!

Rio Tinto workers have been safely evacuated from a mine site near Pannawonica in the Pilbara after lightning sparked a massive fire.

The blaze, which took hold at 4.26pm on Saturday, started east of the Pannawonica townsite.

A Rio Tinto employee said the nearby mine site was evacuated before the emergency warning was issued. She said all workers were at Pannawonica townsite.

For those outside the FIFO-life bubble, Pannawonica is a mining town in the Pilbara operated by Rio Tinto.

Its about 200km southwest of Karratha and its population was 685 at the 2021 census.

The Wandoo Camp is located at Rio Tinto’s Mesa J mine, 16km outside Pannawonica.

A major iron ore mine in the Pilbara, Mesa J produces about 7 million tonnes of iron ore per year.

An Emergency Warning has been issued for an out-of-control fire burning at a Rio Tinto mining camp in WA’s Pilbara region.

The DFES warning says residents at the Wandoo Camp are in danger and need to act immediately to survive.

“You need to shelter in your home in a room away from the firefront and make sure you can easily escape,” the warning reads.

The fire was reported at 4.26pm on Saturday. Firefighters are on the scene and fighting the blaze.

A Watch and Act has been issued for the Pannawonica town site with residents urged to leave now if the way is clear.

Temperatures hit 41C on Saturday but can soar as high as 48C.

DFES is urging people living in lower west and southwest WA to “take action and stay safe” with severe weather expected to hit later tonight.

Locations that may be affected include Armadale, Harvey, Kalamunda, Midland and Pinjarra.

Strong easterly winds averaging 50 to 60km/ph with damaging wind gusts of around 90km/ph are likely from about 10pm tonight with the escarpment and foothills expected to bear the brunt.

Winds are expected to ease by mid-morning on Sunday.

The next warning will be issued at 11pm.

If he’s lost everything in the fire, Wayne Atkins said it would be upsetting but he was more grateful that his wife, kids and pets were all safe.

“If it’s lost, I’ve only lost furniture,” he said.

“It’s only furniture. So, it’s not a big deal. I lost my youngest daughter five years ago and that was the biggest and the hardest thing (to deal with). So, losing furniture, I’d rather lose it over and over again if I could just really keep my daughter.”

Read Mr Atkins full story at The West Australian

Crews from Oakford Bush Fire Brigade have been fighting the Wanneroo blaze shared video footage from the fire front with an important message for West Aussies.

The crew said these fires are a reminder of the importance of a bushfire plan.

“Making decisions when you are stressed, frightened, and confused is extremely difficult and it is easy to underestimate the time it takes to evacuate,” they wrote on social media.

“Please take 15 minutes now and visit https://mybushfireplan.wa.gov.au.”

They revealed that a strong wind change yesterday morning allowed the fire to jump containment lines at the urban edge: “Spreading over a kilometre in a matter of minutes and placing dozens of properties under threat.

“It was a stark reminder of just how quickly the situation can change as we shifted from strengthening containment lines to defending assets.”

The extent of the damage left behind by these fires is slowly becoming clearer.

City of Wanneroo mayor Linda Aitken jumped in a DFES chopper this morning to survey the fire zone, with the resulting aerial photos showing that fire truly is a force of nature.

The blaze has left nothing behind but a scorched, blackened landscape.

“While DFES crews are still at work, we are now also working on helping residents return to their homes, when it is safe to do so,” the city said via Facebook.

Several volunteer fire brigades are sharing pics online, showing the regular punter what it’s like being a vollie on the ground.

Sparks were flying around Quinns Rocks Bush Fire Brigade as they battled the blaze in suburban streets, while the Wanneroo Joondalup SES branch shared pics as they dropped meals to the hardworking fireys on the frontline.

Small armies of camps, meal spaces, food supplies and more have been set up around the northern suburbs to support the efforts of our incredible career and volunteer fire services.

DFES has said its crews made great progress over the last 24 hours.

“The bushfire is now completely contained and we expect to have it fully controlled by tomorrow, provided we don’t see any flare-ups today,” DFES said via Facebook.

“Milder conditions have helped, however, it’s still very hot today and we are expecting the winds to increase tonight. Crews are now focused on strengthening containment lines before those winds arrive this evening.”

More than 1800 hectares have been burned with a massive perimeter of more than 64km.

“Firefighters are working extremely hard to prevent any breakouts,” the post said.

“Thank you for your patience as we work closely with the City of Wanneroo and the Department of Communities to get people back to their homes when their area has been made safe.”