It was Kangaroo Island’s curse to suffer a savage second dose of the flames on Thursday – and Friday will see that misery return to Victoria and NSW as worsening weather conditions banish any hope of a respite from the flames.
A continent away, Perth was confronted late on Thursday with its own fire crisis as an out-of-control blaze invaded the West Australian capital’s south-eastern suburbs.
The fast-moving bushfire, fanned by wind gusts, was being fought by almost 200 firefighters working through the night to stop it heading towards more densely populated areas.
The Perth fire burned through 1,000 hectares in just four hours after starting near the Kwinana Freeway in Baldivis.
Back in the east, winds will have a similar impact on Friday’s revived fires.
“After a relative respite in the weather this week we are expecting another significant spike in conditions,” Bureau of Meteorology spokesman Grahame Reader told reporters.
The hot, dry winds expected early in the day will fan fire behaviour, which would be bad enough for exhausted emergency crews and firefighters still battling to get a handle on the damage that has scarred the south-east corner of the continent.
But then the situation could explode as a gusty southerly change sweeps over the area in the afternoon and turns the fires’ flanks into new and much wider fronts.
“Things look very grim,” fire expert and former CSIRO researcher David Packham told The New Daily.
“The fire event for NSW will be as bad or worse as the north-east of Victoria.
“The Forest Fire Danger Index for the southern slopes and eastern and southern Riverina could hardly be worse.
“Grass fires under these conditions can travel at 27-30 kph. This is about as bad as it gets.”
The long-suffering residents of Kangaroo Island don’t need to be told how fast wind-whipped fire fronts can travel.
A watch and act warning was issued for the outskirts of Kingscote, the island’s largest town, late on Thursday. It was the first time warnings had extended so far east since the bushfires began in late December.
Serious fears were held for Parndana as a fire front moved through the island’s central districts, while there were some reports that a fire front bearing down on Vivonne Bay had been halted.
Heartbreaking footage shows wallabies flee from a raging bushfire burning near a wilderness retreat on Australia’s Kangaroo Island last week.
More than 1 billion animals are estimated to have died in the devastating fires ravaging the continent. https://t.co/bGlchnUPBC pic.twitter.com/2TlchGz4En
— ABC News (@ABC) January 9, 2020
A cool change was approaching from the west late on Thursday, bringing some rain but unlikely enough to significantly impact areas burning strongly.
“The condition of the fire is such that it’s unlikely that they will be extinguished by the rain, and they will continue to burn,” Mr Jones said.
“These fires are travelling quickly.
“What might have seemed safe this morning may not be safe by evening so we want people to get the message and to move away from the fire areas.”
The fire has already destroyed 160,000 hectares across Kangaroo Island including most of the famed Flinders Chase National Park. It has claimed two lives with outback pilot Dick Lang, 78, and his 43-year-old son Clayton killed as they returned to their home.
Meanwhile, expectations could not be more grim in NSW, where The Rural Fire Service has placed total fire bans on 10 regions across the state.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Thursday said HMAS Adelaide remains on standby off the Eden coast and is assisting fire authorities with refuelling and resupplying.
NSW fire crews took advantage of cooler conditions this week by backburning and strengthening containment lines before the forecast heat.
A waterbombing aircraft tasked to help contain the Clyde Mountain blaze near Batemans Bay crashed into a dam near Eden on Thursday.
The pilot, who was the only person onboard, escaped without serious injures.
Authorities, meanwhile, have confirmed that 1870 NSW homes have been destroyed since the start of the fire season, with more than 750 damaged. Almost 200 facilities and 3774 outbuildings have also been razed.
Governor-General David Hurley on Thursday visited the bushfire-ravaged South Coast with his wife, spending the day with residents, volunteers and business owners in Moruya, Mogo, Malua Bay and Broulee.
Mr Hurley urged all those affected by the bushfires to look after their mental health and ask for help.
The couple stopped in at Mogo Zoo and several shops while urging Australians to support small businesses on the South Coast.
“One of the best and most practical ways we can help communities impacted is to support local businesses. That’s particularly important for towns along the south coast which would normally be enjoying their busiest time of the year,” Mr Hurley said in a statement.
“One of the best and most practical ways we can help communities impacted is to support local businesses. That’s particularly important for towns along the south coast which would normally be enjoying their busiest time of the year,” Mr Hurley said in a statement.
The NSW government has also announced it will tip an extra $1 billion into bushfire management and recovery.
“Many rural cities have been experiencing power outages due to the bushfires, eftpos machines aren’t working, leaving those with just cashless debit cards unable to use them.” https://t.co/kyHDxc03nl
— Monique Hurley (@monique_hurley) January 7, 2020
Premier Gladys Berejiklian said the funding would prioritise infrastructure repair and help stimulate fire-ravaged communities over the next two years.
More than 120 fires continued to burn across NSW on Thursday afternoon, with more than 2500 firefighters on the front line.
Since July, 20 people have died in the NSW bushfires, as well as 6200 livestock and millions of wild animals.
-with AAP
The post ‘Things look very grim’: From WA to NSW it’s bad and about to get a whole lot worse appeared first on The New Daily.
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