Dawn Harrison feared the worst when she saw grass on the side of the road at Dyson Drive engulfed by a sea of flames.
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“I felt instant panic because there was a vacant lot of land with lots of dry grass right next to it and all I could was smoke,” Ms Harrison said.
The Alfredton mother of two was on her way back from the supermarket with her son Mitchell, when she spotted the fire believed to have been started by cigarette butt flicked out a car window on Tuesday afternoon.
“The flames were about a feet high and the fire was already about a metre wide so as I got closer I did a U-ey and pulled over,” Ms Harrison said.
“Another bloke saw the flames and he stopped his car and pulled over as well.
“Mitchell ran into a nearby house to alert them and the neighbour got a hose and started spraying the flames.”
Another quick-thinking neighbour also ran out of their house and began stomping on the flames.
The Ballarat CFA went to the site later that day and confirmed the fire was started by a cigarette butt.
The incident comes as the CFA launch its Don’t be a Butthead campaign, which urges drives not to throw lit cigarette butts out of their car windows.
“If the fire spread through that lot of land the impacts would be devastating, it’s really scary to think it’s that easy to start a fire,” Ms Harrison said.
“I’m just hoping the idiot who threw the cigarette butt out the window will realise the damage it could have caused and think twice about doing it next time.”
CFA deputy chief officer Garry Cook said foolish behaviour like flicking a cigarette butt into roadside grass could result in devastating fires.
He said under the right conditions fires can start, rapidly spread and smoke can blanket a road within minutes.
“Not only is this foolish but it is a crime,” he said. “In Victoria, more than half of bushfires are deliberately lit or caused by reckless behaviour.
“One of the most common causes is inappropriately disposing of cigarette butts.
“Recklessly caused fires are often viewed by the community as accidental, but in reality, the potential for injury, loss of life, property damage and drain on resources is the same as that caused by arson.”
In the last five years CFA has attended approximately 200 roadside grassfires, caused by cigarettes.
“Roadside fires pose a significant danger to drivers not only from smoke, but flames or falling burning trees or branches, and there’s high potential for tragic consequences,” he said.
Across the country cigarette butts make up approximately 50 per cent of rubbish.
Last financial year, Victoria’s Environmental Protection Authority handed out more than $6.5 million in fines to more than 15,000 people for discarding litter from their vehicles.
Anyone who sees people illegally disposing of cigarette butts is urged to contact EPA Victoria 1300 372 842.