Two people have suffered minor injuries and two homes have been destroyed in an out of control bushfire in Parkerville east of Perth. Authorities expect the number of destroyed sheds and property to increase as damage assessment teams inspect the area.
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00:00 Spot fire starting but requesting more units. Over. Units on way to you now. Over.
00:09 In less than an hour, properties in Parkerville were ablaze.
00:13 House is on fire. Unlikely to be saved. Over.
00:23 Surrounded by tall trees and bushland, there was little firefighters could do for these
00:27 properties.
00:37 Scorching temperatures and winds gusting over 65km/h helped the fire escalate almost instantly
00:44 to an emergency level threat.
00:46 Can we use you Red Flag warning for Johnson power lines on the road currently live. Over.
00:52 I just approached the driveway up to the house and it was like down there like a wall, like
00:56 a black wall. All too late, all cars, everything is on fire, the house is on fire. All gone.
01:04 Within probably a minute and a half it was on my property so no one had had warning.
01:09 This is at 9.31 I checked my watch so that's when it started and by the time I was off
01:15 the property it was perhaps five, six minutes later but it was too late.
01:25 This latest fire emergency a bleak reminder of the risk of living in Perth's hills.
01:31 Almost ten years ago more than 80 homes in Parkerville and Stoneville were damaged or
01:35 destroyed by fire started by a collapsed power pole.
01:39 This fire considered accidental, sparked by a tree falling onto a power line.
01:45 The power lines have clashed in a couple of different spots so that the action of the
01:49 tree falling onto the power lines causes them to sway, power lines have hit and the fire.
01:54 Even for those who lost their homes, gratitude for the efforts of firefighters.
01:59 I can't imagine how they contained that. The fire was double the height of the trees when
02:04 I left. How they managed to contain that in such a short period of time in 39 degree heat
02:09 with this wind. They're amazing, they really are.
02:13 By late afternoon authorities were able to contain and downgrade the fire but with strong
02:18 wind gusts and low humidity there will be no reprieve for crews in the hills.
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