12/12/2025
A late-night blaze on the Western Highway turned into a massive multi-agency operation on Tuesday, after a truck fire lit up the Ararat skyline just after 10pm. 🚨
Ararat Fire Brigade crews were still en route when they spotted flames in the distance, prompting the Incident Controller to escalate the job and call for up to ten tankers to ensure enough water hit the scene. 🔥
When firefighters arrived, the rear trailer was already fully involved, with heat starting to creep into the front unit, but the quick-thinking driver had disconnected the trailers and moved the prime mover to safety. 🚛
Crews launched an aggressive attack with two hose lines before BA teams pushed deeper into the firefight as more members arrived on scene. 💨
A Control Point, BA staging, Decon Area and Rehab Area were all set up early, keeping the job structured and giving firefighters somewhere to cool down and recover between rotations. 🧑🚒
Support agencies rolled in fast, with SES providing lighting and logistics and Ararat Rural City delivering extra water and machinery to help rip open the load so hidden fire pockets could be extinguished. 💡
Additional CFA tankers maintained a round-the-clock water relay into the Pumper, moving thousands of litres nonstop as the crews battled the stubborn fire. 🚒
By the time the flames were finally out, around 100,000 litres of water had been used and crews had been fighting for nearly five hours. 💧
Victoria Police took control of the scene just after 3am, with exhausted firefighters returning to station at 5.12am after one of their biggest jobs of the season. 🚓
Thanks to every brigade that backed the response, including Stawell, Buangor, Great Western, Crowlands, Elmhurst, Langi Logan, Moyston, Pomonal, Warrak and Willaura, along with Ararat SES! 🙌
