More than 70 hectares of land has been devastated by the fire about 6km out of town off the Gwydir Hwy.

The fire, started by a dropped cigarette about 1pm on Wednesday, was still burning late yesterday afternoon.

Crews from the Inverell Rural Fire Service, Inverell NSW Fire Brigade and National Parks worked together to keep the fire under control. Rural Fire Service Northern Tablelands Inspector Steve Prior said the fire was on patrol status.

“At the moment we have strong containment lines and we are expecting it to be completely out by (last night),” Inspector Prior said.

“We have established the fire was an accidental ignition from a dropped cigarette.

“I think a lot of people underestimate just how dry it is at this time of year and how quickly a fire can start.

“It was lucky that no homes were destroyed and we were able to put precautionary measures in place in case the wind changed.

“We are urging the community to make sure they be aware that fires can start easily because next time more damage could be caused.”

More than 20 firefighting personnel worked together to bring the fire under control.

“This was a prime example of the cooperation between the Rural Fire Service, the NSW Fire Brigade and National Parks putting in a joint effort,” Inspector Prior said. Inverell NSW Fire Brigade station officer Mark Savage said the main concern was to stop the fire from affecting houses.

“We had a crew working with the Rural Fire Service to make sure we could contain it to make sure it didn’t go near the house and sub station,” station officer Savage said. “We spent about two hours there helping out.”