HOMES at Splitters Creek were threatened and East Albury residents were spooked by large plumes of smoke after two fires broke out yesterday.
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The first fire on Eastern Hill near the communications towers is being treated as suspicious.
Crews were called out just after 11am and had put out the fire by midday.
But several then had to rush to Splitters Creek, where a fire had been started by a man using a mower.
That fire spread into an inaccessible gully, where the flames could only be extinguished by a water-bombing helicopter.
Back at Eastern Hill, Fire Rescue NSW Albury duty controller Stewart Alexander said the last crew left at 1.10pm.
He then joined police for an hour in an on-site investigation.
“There were no signs of accidental ignition or other similar causes,” he said.
Mr Alexander said a police and Fire Rescue NSW investigation into the fire would continue in coming days.
The fire burnt up to five hectares of bushland on the eastern side of Eastern Hill.
At one point it was thought the fire might have spotted over to create a second front.
But Mr Alexander said it had soon been determined there was just one fire that “seemed to be travelling in different directions”.
“It’s been very much in the vicinity of the lookout near those telecommunications towers,” he said.
Mr Alexander said the fire produced a lot of smoke.
“There’s still a bit of greenery up here but it was moving rapidly,” he said.
Six Rural Fire Service tankers, three Fire and Rescue NSW trucks and 30 firefighters tackled the blaze.
All were drawn from the immediate area — the RFS units were from Lavington and Thurgoona, while all three Albury stations attended for Fire and Rescue.
Mr Alexander said people throughout the East Albury area saw the smoke, resulting in about 100 triple-0 calls.
He said nearby residents had no need for concern as the nearest houses were several hundred metres away, below the lookout.
RFS southern border team operations co-ordinator Marg Wehner said the Splitters Creek blaze was a fast-moving blaze in the Odewahn Road area, which was reported by the owner of the property at 12.39pm.
“The guy who started it called it in — it was caused by a mower,” she said.
“Splitters Creek is always awkward because it’s one road in, one road out.”
Insp Wehner said the fire had threatened two properties.
“It depends on what they do around their houses — if they’re watering, the fire will run to the edge of the green,” she said.
“It was enough to make them nervous.”
The fire burnt about 12 hectares.