From Saturday they were kept on their toes with up to 15 call outs across the Great Lakes. Some were major fires requiring the attention of up to 10 local brigades.

Some threatened livestock and large tracts of bush. Smoke from one fire forced the closure of the Pacific Highway just south of Bulahdelah for up to two hours at around 4.30pm on Saturday.

But the frustration for fire fighters comes when the public displays a real carelessness with fire, as appeared to be the case on Monday afternoon.

At around 1.30pm fire fighters were called to a blaze on the south side of the Bulahdelah bridge which was threatening livestock.

This was extinguished but within a matter of hours they were back again when a tree caught alight in the same area.

“It becomes a bit of a joke,” operations officer with the Rural Fire Service (RFS) South Manning Team Inspector Cecil Miller said.

He’s not pointing the finger, but does see a certain level of carelessness when it comes to fire.

“It could be somebody throwing a cigarette out the window or somebody who leaves a camp fire unattended.”

Another common scenario is landowners burning off in the lead up to the summer months. If conditions change, winds pick up, or if they’re simply left unattended these ‘controlled burns’ can soon rage out of control.

“Volunteers are out there doing their best but at the end of the day it’s up to the community to respect what volunteers do.”

On Monday two fires west of the Bucketts Way near Booral burnt out 250 hectares and took 10 brigades most of the day to put out. One of these was an escaped private burn. The other was in the Karuah National Park and park staff was still monitoring the situation yesterday.

A third fire in this vicinity broke out in hilly terrain just 3km west of Booral on Monday afternoon and crews were still monitoring the situation yesterday.

Another large fire broke out at Minimbah, near Nabiac, on Monday afternoon but, as was the case with the Booral fires, the afternoon downpour provided welcome relief for fire fighters.

“The man upstairs was giving us a bit of a helping hand,” Inspector Miller said.

He stresses people must be vigilant with all fires.

He also reminds parents of their responsibility to educate children of the dangers of fire in the lead up to the school holidays.

And for those planning controlled burns give your local brigade 24 hours notice and if things do go wrong don’t be embarrassed to dial 000 immediately.

For any information on fire safety and regulations call the RFS fire control centre at Tuncurry on 6555 5782.