An illegal fire on Boxing Day, 2019, damaged the Mount Wandera communications tower, which directly affected emergency services' ability to respond to the South Coast bushfires, a court has been told.
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On Friday, March 13, an arrest warrant was issued for Christopher Paul McMahon, 72, of Araluen Road, Deua River Valley, after he again failed to appear in Moruya Local Court.
Magistrate Doug Dick convicted him in his absence of lighting a fire in the peak bushfire season without a fire permit and recklessly allowing it spread.
The blaze joined the Clyde Mountain fire, and police told the court the fires together were responsible for the loss of more than 400 homes in the Eurobodalla Shire.
The court heard the Deua River fire directly affected the ability of emergency services, including RFS, police and paramedics, to respond to the New Year's Eve fires, as the Wandera tower was damaged.
Between 10am and 11am on Boxing Day, McMahon lit a fire near his house to burn grass around his fruit trees which he told police could not be mowed due to rough and uneven ground.
He extinguished the fire with a watering can before retiring to the house to watch the Boxing Day cricket test.
He later saw flames.
He went outside and attempted to extinguish the fire but it had already gained momentum and spread to adjoining bushland.
The court heard that at 11.49am, he called the Deua River Valley RFS and said "if we get a fire truck out here now, we might be able to stop it".
The brigade attended a short time later.
The fire had travelled into thick, dry eucalypt forest on the western side of the property and up a steep slope to the top of the ridge line into rough terrain.
Air support was requested and was diverted from other duties.
Numerous RFS ground crews were called,two helicopters, two fixed wing, a small water bombing aircraft, one air tank and support aircraft were called.
McMahon stated he had burnt the grass by first wetting the ground and he had conducted several small burns during the coolest parts of the day in the previous week.
He had used this practice to burn areas of ground he could not clear with a lawn mower.
McMahon was later arrested and charged with lighting a fire without a permit and being reckless as to its spread.
