Neergabby bushfire ‘contained and controlled’ thanks to more than 100 firefighters who battled the blaze

Firefighters have brought the Neergabby bushfire to heel and a 15km stretch of Indian Ocean Drive has reopened to traffic more than 24 hours after the blaze ignited in the Shire of Gingin. More than 100 career and volunteer firefighters battled the fire as it tore through nearly 1000ha of land after first being reported about 11.40am on Saturday, threatening lives and homes. Firefighters started to make ground with efforts to manage the out of control bushfire on Sunday, and by early afternoon it was deemed stationary and “contained but not controlled”. By 4.30pm, the Department of Fire and Emergency Services downgraded the alert level from a Bushfire Watch and Act to a Bushfire Advice — saying it had been contained and was under control. A Bushfire All Clear was issued for parts of Neergabby and Woodbridge in the Shire of Gingin, but firefighters were expected to continue to monitor the area for the rest of the day and night. Multiple properties were engulfed by flames during the more than 24-hour long inferno, with at least one shed and multiple vehicles understood to have been destroyed. The fire had been heading south west towards the popular tourist town of Moore River, on Saturday but was able to be contained thanks to aerial support including three water bomber helicopters and two fixed-wing planes. Department of Fire and Emergency Services warned there was a lot of smoke in the area, and while there is no immediate danger to lives and homes, residents and travellers have been urged to keep up to date “in case the situation changes”. Only Chitna Road remained closed and open only to local traffic at 4.30pm on Sunday. People on Chitna Road were able to leave west to Indian Ocean Drive and head north, or east to Military Road and head in a southerly direction if it is safe to do so. The bushfire comes after the State’s United Professional Firefighters Union warned homes would be lost if a bushfire catastrophe struck this weekend. With critical firefighting trucks and more than a dozen staff out of action, an internal memo seen by 7NEWS revealed the situation as “very serious”, and that if a blaze ignited on Saturday or Sunday, with current weather conditions, “certainty properties will be lost”. Meanwhile, Bushfire Advice warnings remain in place at other fires within the Shire of Collie, the Shire of Nannup, Shire of Capel and Shire of Toodyay. To find out more, visit emergency.wa.gov.au