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While the rest of the world was celebrating New Year's Eve and welcoming the new year, devastating wildfires in southeastern Australia killed at least 17 people and forced thousands to evacuate to avoid being affected, as their homes lay in the path of the spreading flames. The fires turned the area into a blazing inferno, destroying more than 4 million hectares of land.
Up to 4,000 people were trapped in the coastal town of Mallacoota as wildfires raged and plumes of smoke turned day into night. The fires intensified partly due to strong winds carrying glowing embers.
Australian authorities have prepared evacuation plans by sea or air should they be necessary. Those trapped have already donned life vests to take refuge in the water if the fire spreads to them.
Temperatures here can reach hundreds of degrees Celsius and incinerate anything. And the ocean is the "last resort" for those trapped – according to the Victorian Emergency Management Committee.
Authorities have been warning for days that 30,000 tourists enjoying their summer holidays in Australia should leave the area, and this is just one of hundreds of fires in a devastating bushfire season on an unprecedented scale.
Further north, on the coasts of New South Wales, holidaymakers were also warned that the fires were spreading rapidly and that they should seek shelter.
Historic bushfires have been raging in Australia for months. Experts and scientists believe the fires, which are occurring on an unprecedented scale and with unprecedented impact, are due to greenhouse gas emissions that are raising temperatures and causing drought – the core cause of these devastating blazes.
To date, wildfires in Australia have claimed the lives of at least 14 people, destroyed more than 1,000 homes, and burned approximately 5.5 million hectares – an area larger than Denmark or the Netherlands. For weeks, Australian cities have been shrouded in toxic smoke from the bushfires. Air quality in the capital Canberra reached dangerous levels on January 1st, with significantly reduced visibility. New Year's Eve fireworks were canceled in Canberra and several other locations.
Currently, firefighters are racing against time to take advantage of the weather in southeastern Australia to control bushfires, amid warnings that fires could flare up again on January 4th as temperatures rise.
