A series of cold fronts moving across the state have put firefighters west of Sydney on high alert today.A very high fire danger warning and total fire bans have been put in place from the south coast in Shoalhaven, up through Illawarra and to the Greater Sydney region.
Last night the blaze at Ruined Castle, south of Katoomba, was downgraded to advice level but this could change due to strong winds forecast for today.
The blaze was visible from the Blue Mountain’s Three Sisters as it was controlled with the help of firefighting aircraft.
Fires burn at Sydney’s doorstep
The fire burning north of Batesman Bay is threatening homes and is spreading towards the Princes Highway.
The RFS said residents from Durras to Bawley Point were told to evacuate as firefighters worked to contain the blaze.
But Greg Allen from the RFS said windy conditions could complicate their efforts.
“Although temperatures may not be as high as we’ve seen over the last few days, the winds will be quite strong for most parts of the state,” he said.
Energy union blames jobs cut for blackouts
A workers’ union says job cuts to the NSW power network by the Australian Energy Regulator were partly to blame for the days-long blackout in parts of Sydney’s north.
The United Services Union (USU) said Ausgrid had cut more than 300 jobs in the last two months after the regulator took money out of the business earlier this year.
Troy Dunne from the USU said more job cuts were expected in the next few years.
“There will be a further 400 to 500 roles made redundant in Ausgrid,” he said.
“In a critical network the size of Ausgrid, which takes in the Sydney metropolitan area and the central coast, it just simply isn’t sustainable.”
Ausgrid said last night it had restored power to 95 per cent of homes and business after a freak storm wreaked havoc on the electricity grid last Tuesday.
Almost 2,000 Ausgrid customers have been warned it could be another 48 hours before their power returns.
NSW Government grilled over TAFE consultants
The NSW Government is under pressure to explain why millions of dollars are being spent on consultants for TAFE while jobs in the sector are being cut.
The Berejiklian government is being accused of spending more than $6 million on consultants for TAFE since 2018, despite hundreds of jobs being cut in recent months.
Labor’s TAFE spokesman, Jihad Dib, said the spending did not make sense.
“We understand that there is a time and place for consultancies, but certainly some of these consultancy projects are just way over the top and amounts to nothing more than a bit of navel gazing,” he said.
Alleged underwear thief in court
A man is facing court today after NSW Police found more than 1,000 pairs of women’s underwear, bras and swimwear while searching his property.
Police said they investigated the 37-year-old man after linking him to the theft of a bag of women’s underwear from a hotel room in Mascot in October.
After searching his Rosebery home in early November, police charged him with breaking and entering and taking property.
He was granted strict conditional bail and will appear at Downing Centre Local Court.abcnews