NSW man arrested for deliberately lighting bushfire

A man has been charged with the bushfire that scorched New South Wales bushlands. The 52-year-old man was arrested Thursday for allegedly deliberately lighting a fire and causing 12 hectares of land to burn.

The unnamed man was taken to Casino Police Station and charged with intentionally causing a fire and being reckless in regards to its spread. He is scheduled to Casino Local Court on Oct. 3.

A Rural Fire Service (RFS) spokesman told 9News that the bushfire on Wednesday quickly spread to nearby bushland. It continued spreading and was not contained until midday on Thursday. By then, 12 hectares of land had been affected.

“It was part of a massive group of fires up in that region,” the spokesman said. There have been 80 fires burning across NSW.

Meanwhile, three teenage boys have also been arrested for ignoring the total fire ban. The boys, all 16 years old, were charged with lighting a fire at the base of a cliff on Blue Mountains on Wednesday.

Local residents called the police after seeing the boys starting a fire. When they were challenged by the residents, they allegedly ran away. The teenagers attempted to smother the blaze but it had already spread. Firefighters from Fire and Rescue NSW were called to extinguish the fire before it spread even further.

“It’s not funny, it’s not a joke, and someone could lose their property or even worse,” NSW Rural Fire Service Deputy Commissioner Rob Rogers was quoted by the Sydney Morning Herald as saying.

Resident Sue St Clair told Seven News that what the boys did could have endangered everyone’s lives.

“There’s only one way in and one way out of this estate,” she said. “This could have all gone up. Could have all been destroyed.”

All three were granted conditional bail. They will appear at the Children’s Court on Sep. 6. Another 16-year-old girl has also been arrested and charged with the same offence.