Dozens of fires rage across large parts of eastern Australia – here is a summary of what we know about the extent of the blazes and their effect
Sixteen fires are burning at emergency level across Australia, eight in Victoria and eight in New South Wales, with the entire East Gippsland region under an emergency alert.
One firefighter died overnight, and others were injured, in a “freakish weather event” near Albury, described as a “fire tornado” that overturned a 10-tonne truck on flat ground.
In Victoria, four people are missing, and the premier, Daniel Andrews, said authorities “have real fears for their safety”.
Four thousand residents have been evacuated in the Victorian coastal town of Mallacoota and are sheltering on the foreshore, as the fire front hit properties this morning. Photos taken from 9am showed the sky pitch black.
Victoria’s emergency services commissioner, Andrew Crisp, confirmed “significant property losses across all of East Gippsland”.
About 5,700 homes are without power in East Gippsland, and more than 200,000 hectares have been burned.
Two hundred new fires started on Monday, and 60 new fires started from midnight until lunchtime Tuesday. These conditions were worse than predicted, and the Bureau of Meteorology will be updating its forecast, accordingly.
In NSW, residents of Cobargo were evacuated as the fire front reached the town and threatened homes.
Also in NSW, people in bushfire-prone areas between Batemans Bay and Bega, and also the south coast town of Tathra, have been told to evacuate.
Continue reading...from The Guardian https://ift.tt/39t2Syg
via
0 Comments