A West Australian volunteer firefighter died this afternoon while responding to a bushfire near Esperance.
The man was part of a crew operating a private firefighting vehicle on a neighbouring farm to his, near Coomalbidgup, the Department of Fire and Emergency Services confirmed this evening.
Arson Squad detectives will travel from Perth tomorrow as part of an investigation, as ‘out of control’ fires burn in two areas tonight.
An emergency warning is currently in place for people in parts of Coomalbidgup, in an area bounded by Beltana Road to the east, Ashdale Road to the north and west, Sears Road to the west and South Coast Highway to the south.
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They are being warned of a threat to lives, with homes in Beltana Road under threat by fire.
The fire began at 8.14am and has burned more than 7000 hectares.
At 4.40pm, the fire was declared a Level 2 incident due to escalating fire behaviour and, shortly afterwards, control was handed to the Department of Fire and Emergency Services at the request of the Shire of Esperance.
Another emergency warning is also in place for people in an area bounded by Neds Corner Road, Grass Patch Road, Grigg Road, Belgian Road, Coomalbidgup Road and Cascade Road in Cascade.
