00:01Fire trucks have been going in and out of this road here at Old Esk Road north of Blackbutt.
00:07We're about two hours drive inland from Brisbane.
00:10And this area, as you can tell, is quite agricultural.
00:13There's a lot of scrub around it.
00:15The last census, the town of Teela, had only about 90 people.
00:19But there's been a large, dangerous and out of control fire burning around here.
00:24At one stage, there's been more than 20 fire and rescued crews trying to battle the blaze.
00:31There's been choppers going up ahead and trucks have been filling up their water just over there where there's been
00:36a truck.
00:37I've spoken to a few residents who've been filling up their own water containers.
00:41They say it's been an absolute shocking few months in terms of how dry it's been in these parts around
00:48southern Queensland.
00:49We know other regions in the state have been drought declared and a lot of these dams around here are
00:55running fairly dry.
00:56So it's difficult in terms of getting the water needed to fight this fire.
01:01There's been a seek now and shelter warning for many of these residents whose properties are along Stretton Drive and
01:09Scott Close, which is at Teela.
01:11They've been told for the last few hours they shouldn't try to leave. It's too dangerous.
01:16They need to stay where they are. There's also been a prepare to leave for residents along Old Esk Road,
01:22where we are now, and also along Wild Deer Drive.
01:26Black Bart Showgrounds has become an evacuation site for anyone who needs to find a bit of shelter and stay
01:33there.
01:34But at this stage, crews are trying to still get the blaze under control.
01:38It's not clear at this stage what exactly caused the fire, but as we've been told from the Weather Bureau,
01:45these hot conditions have made it ripe for fires to blaze up.
01:49And across the state, as we speak, there are more than 50 fires currently active.
01:54This is one of the first major bushfires that have cropped up in this bushfire season.
01:58It definitely won't be the last. Residents here, many of whom are in the Rural Fire Service themselves, know what's
02:06to come and know how to prepare.
02:07But they're certainly bracing themselves for a busy bushfire season.
02:11Thank you, everyone.
02:12Thank you, everyone.
02:12Thank you, everyone.
02:13You
Comments