Amid the current bushfire emergency and increased fire risk across the coming days, authorities are warning that caution around campfires will be critical over the long weekend.

Local temperatures are forecast to reach the high 30s on Saturday before rising further to the 40s on Sunday, Monday and Tuesday next week.

Forest Fire Management Victoria (FFMVic), CFA, the Conservation Regulator, and Parks Victoria are urging campers to be aware of rules around campfire safety, to avoid their campfires starting bushfires, threatening life and property and place additional pressure on emergency services.

Since the start of this summer, FFMVic firefighters and CFA have responded to over 230 fires that were started by campfires across forests, national parks and private property.

This public holiday is among the highest-risk dates on the calendar for campfire issues, as reports of unsafe campfires spike when thousands of Victorians take camping trips over the long weekend.

Across last year’s Australia Day long weekend, there were 52 campfire offences detected including 33 unattended campfires across Victoria’s national parks and State forests. Every unsafe campfire has the potential to cause a bushfire and have catastrophic consequences.

D23 Commander Daryl Owen said the CFA is encouraging the community to remain vigilant in relation to fires, including the safe and controlled use of barbeques and campfires as we head into the long weekend.

“The grass and bushland is extremely dry, and leaving a campfire unattended or an excessive campfire size can result in a fire escaping, and causing damage or injury,” he said.

“With the weather heating up again over the long weekend and into next week, leaving a campfire burning poses significant risk to the community.”

If travelling and camping, check the VicEmergency app and local conditions for road and park closures, as there are a number of closures across the Victorian High Country due to fires.

Commander Owen said the nearby Longwood fire grew to a size of more than 130,000 hectares and has now been contained, however there are many burning stumps and logs often below ground that still present a fire risk.

“Our local CFA volunteers are taking a well earned break from the recent weeks of firefighting and supporting other communities,” he said.

“This summer has so far seen 17 Strike team (each with four to five tankers and crew members) deployments from across CFA District 23, to the Longwood and Walwa fires, on top of the considerable number of local fires.”

Before lighting a campfire, campers must check whether a Total Fire Ban has been declared via the VicEmergency website and app.

Commander Owen said it is the responsibility of the person who lights a fire to ensure it is legal, kept safe and any conditions are complied with.

“If you light it, you own it,” he said.

“Fires started through reckless behaviour could have the same outcomes as a deliberately lit fire.”

Campers must extinguish their campfire before leaving a campsite, using water not soil.

If a fire is not properly extinguished, it can smoulder under soil for days and reignite.

FFMVic, Conservation Regulator and Parks Victoria Officers will patrol campsites in parks and state forests over the long weekend to educate campers and enforce campfire safety rules.

Officers will also continue to raise awareness about recent changes to Victoria’s campfire safety rules, which now prohibit digging a trench to construct a campfire.

In national parks, campfires are only permitted in fireplaces provided. In state forests, campfires can also be lit in portable firepits.

Report unattended campfires on 136 186 or call 000 to report a bushfire.

For more on campfire safety rules, visit https://www.vic.gov.au/campfires-stoves-and-bbqs or www.cfa.vic.gov.au.

Chris Hardman, Chief Fire Officer, Forest Fire Management Victoria said given the current bushfire situation, emergency services don’t want to add any bushfires into the landscape.

"People need to think carefully about whether a campfire is absolutely necessary and if a campfire is lit, it must be completely out before leaving," he said.

"Under no circumstances should one be lit – or kept alight – on a Total Fire Ban day.”