Volunteer firefighters have been called to 12 illegal/careless fires in the NSW Rural Fire Service (RFS) Chifley/Lithgow Team area in the past three months.

Of these fires that occurred from April to June, seven were in the Bathurst local government area, three in Oberon and two in Lithgow.

NSW RFS operational officer Gary Hansen said the most concerning fire occurred on a Kanimbla Valley property on April 9, where the owner had already received caution letters for previous burn-offs.

“The land owner didn’t notify [neighbours or the RFS] and wasn’t on site when the RFS arrived on site,” he said.

“The fire threatened nearby residential properties.”

The property owner who lit the fire was subsequently issued $3300 in fines for not notifying the RFS and neighbours prior to lighting the fire, and also for leaving the fire unattended.

“We don’t issue fines lightly … in this instance we tried previously with [caution] letters,” he said.

Mr Hansen said most of the 12 call-outs were for fires where the land owner had failed to notify neighbours and the RFS.

“Over 70 per cent are where they just don’t tell us when they’re going to burn so we have to send a [firefighting] truck out,” he said.

“It’s taking volunteer [firefighters] away from their work and their families because they have to treat it as serious, at least until they get there.”

Mr Hansen said the number of call outs to illegal/careless burn was a concern due to the very dry conditions, and he urged anyone considering a burn-off to take adequate precautions prior.

“Notify your neighbours and the RFS at least a day prior,” he said.

“Monitor conditions, especially the wind. If the wind is going to be 15km/h or more, we recommend not to light the fire.”

Call the Chifley/Lithgow RFS Team on 1300 258 737 for more information.