FIRE EMERGENCY EDITION
MITCHELL • MURRINDINDI • MANSFIELD • NILLUMBIK • STRATHBOGIE • WHITTLESEA • YARRA RANGES
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SUNDAY, JANUARY 11, 2026
IT’S NOT OVER YET THE PHOENIX NEWSPAPER RETURNS
● The first issue of The Phoenix after the 2009 Black Saturday fires. ■ The Phoenix Newspaper is making its return in 2026. After the Black Saturday fires in 2009, our company produced The Phoenix Newspaper in the bushfire affected region. In the 18 months of the project, we gave away $1.3 million in free advertising to give a leg up to local people and local businesses getting back up on their feet. Starting February 4, The Phoenix will be a section inside The Local Paper each issue during 2026 - online weekly, in print fortnightly ... with online news updates instantly. Full details will be annnounced in coming days and weeks. The Phoenix will be included in: ■ our Regional Edition (Mansfield, Murrindindi, Nillumbik - rural, Whittlesea rural, Yarra Ranges), ■ our Mitchell Strathbogie Edition, and ■ our Lilydale - Yarra Valley Express Edition. The Phoenix section will give us the necessary extra space to give extensive full coverage to bushfire recovery news, as well as again providing absolutely free advertising to local people and local businesses who need it. Our newspaper is available free to readers. No cover price for hard copies, no paywall for online readers. And free advertising for local people and local businesses who need it in really tough times.
Ash Long, Editor
■ The heavy cost of damage of the Longwood fire throughout the north-east region is only just starting to be calculated. Many millions of dollars of devastation has been caused to residences and farming properties in the Strathbogie, Murrindindi, Mitchell and Mansfield municipalities. Euroa MLA Annabelle Cleeland’s family lost farm land in the blaze, but learned that their home had been saved. The imminent danger of further damage in teh week ahead from the ongoing fires is not lost on officials and volunteer firefighters. Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan has declared a ‘State of Disaster’ for 18 Local Government Areas and one Alpine Resort. This follows advice from the Minister for Emergency Services and the Emergency Management Commissioner. The Premier says that she is satisfied there is an emergency that constitutes, or is likely to constitute, a significant and widespread danger to life or property in the following part of Victoria: ■ Alpine Shire ■ Ararat Rural City ■ Colac Otway Shire ■ Corangamite Shire ■ East Gippsland Shire ■ Golden Plains Shire ■ Greater Bendigo City ■ Horsham Rural City ■ Lake Mountain Alpine Resort (Unincorporated) ■ Mansfield Shire ■ Mildura Rural City ■ Mitchell Shire ■ Moira Shire ■ Mount Alexander Shire ■ Murrindindi Shire ■ Pyrenees Shire ■ Strathbogie Shire ■ Towong Shire ■ Wellington Shire A State of Disaster: ■ May be declared to exist in the whole, or parts, of Victoria ■ Exists immediately upon the making of the declaration and remains in force for seven days (unless another declaration is made) ■ Can be revoked or varied by the Premier at any time. The declaration gives the Government, through the Minister for Emergency Services, the powers and resources it needs.
● Jacinta Allan, Victorian Premier
Residents, farmers begin to count cost of Longwood fire
have been advised to leave: if you can, you must. “The declaration allows authorities to order evacuations, control movement through dangerous areas, and act as decisively as possible. “It ensures that every part of government – every department, every agency, every authority – is focused on one priority: protecting life. It also means that if someone insists on staying in an area where their life is in danger, authorities have the power to force them to leave. “These fires are widespread, fast-moving and devastating. Taking this step is about one thing: protecting Victorian lives. And it sends one clear message: if you have been told to leave – go,” Ms Allan said.
Latest News Unable to return
● Euroa MLA Annabelle Cleeland’s family lost their farm property in the Longwood fires. She is pictured in an online call with State Opposition Leader Jess Wilson.
Examples of the Minister’s broad power to direct and allocate government resources include: ■ Directing any government agency to do, or refrain from doing, any function, power, duty, or responsibility ■ Declaring that the operation of an Act or subordinate instrument is suspended, if compliance by a government agency with that legislation would inhibit response to or recovery from the disaster ■ Take possession and make use of any person’s property to respond to the disaster ■ Controlling movement in and out of the disaster area and ■ Compelling the evacuation of persons from the disaster area or any part of it. Ms Allan said: “Tonight, following advice from the Minister for Emergency Services and the Emergency Management Commissioner, I declared a State of Disaster in 18 fire-affected local government areas and one alpine resort. “This declaration gives our authorities extra powers to confront an emergency of extraordinary scale and danger. Tonight, we have reached that level of danger. “This does not change specific advice currently in place for anyone in fire-affected areas. But it sends a clear message to those who
■ Some Alexandra and Yea residents who evacuated on Friday (Jan. 9) have found that their return to the bushfire-affected area has been disallowed by Police roadblocks at Yarra Glen and Toolangi. ‘Take Shelter’ and ‘Too Late To Leave’ advisories were still being issued by the Country Fire Authority for Yea, Limestone, Whanregarwen and Acheron late on Saturday night (Jan. 10). Similar warnings were still in force for Devils River, Eildon, Taylor Bay and Thornton. At 4.57pm Saturday, the ‘take shelter’ alert was renewed for Avenel, Caveat, Creightons Creek, Dropmore, Euroa, Gobur, Gooram, Highlands, Kanumbra, Kelvin View, Locksley, Longwood, Longwood East, Merton, Old Longwood, Ruffy, Strathbogie, Tarcombe, Terip Terip, Upton Hill, Whiteheads Creek and Yarck. At 2.38pm Saturday, alerts were re-circulated for Alexandra, Fawcett, Lake Eildon and Maintongoon. "You are in danger and need to act immediately to survive,” said the emeergency warning. “The safest option is to take shelter indoors immediately. It is too dangerous to leave.” It was 2.23pm Saturdays when a ‘Take Shelter’ and ‘Too Late To Leave’ warning was re-sent for Cathkin, Caveat, Ghin Ghin, Highlands, Kanumbra, Killingworth, Koriella, Molesworth, Whanregarwen and Yarck.
Power, phones out
■ Only intermittent telephone coverage has been renewed in the Alexandra and Yea townships. Both mobile and landline services have been affected. A large number of residents have been unable to access emergency warnings via their mobile phones following the system failures. The Ausnet outage tracker records widespread electricity supply difficulties.