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High temperatures and winds fuel fires across Australia



The threat of wild fires, or bush fires, due to scorching summer heat is always a threat every Australian summer. This summer has been one of the worst fire seasons due to the number of fires, their wide-spread coverage, and their ferocity. In January, bush fires have been recorded in every state of Australia, with the Tasmanian fires the most devastating to date – and summer is not yet over.
Canberra is not only the capital of Australia, but also the capital of the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) – a landlocked territory that houses the Australian federal parliament. It is surrounded by the state of New South Wales (NSW).
So far, the Canberra Times (January 9, 2012) is reporting that the ACT has largely been less affected by bushfires, but this could change as the temperatures and winds escalate. Ten years ago, in January 2003, Canberra and the ACT had its worst fire – with
So far, we have had 13 grass fires (in suburbs including Fyshwick, Macquarie, Higgins, Kambah, Gungahlin, Bonython, Greenway, an Belconnen – caused mainly by clashing power lines) and a fire in Namadgi National Park, with no homes threatened. These were quickly attended too due to residents calling the Triple-Zero emergency number. Fires are burning along the New South Wales coast but the largest concentration of fires is in the south-east of NSW around the ACT/Canberra area.
The ACT Rural Fire Service and the ACT Fire and Rescue are monitoring fires in the outlying areas and roads leading to the ACT, with a number of road closures due to fire and smoke over the past few days. North of the ACT border there was a fire at the Eagle Hawk Caravan Park and west of the ACT there are fires near Jugiong with at least one home destroyed. Up to 20 homes are at risk near Jugiong with a further 30 homes at risk near Cooma, south of Canberra, and 40 homes at risk near Bungendore. Fires are therefore surrounding the ACT with many parts of southern NSW affected – such as Crookwell, Bega, Nowra, Tarcutta, Yass, Harden, and Wagga Wagga. The Canberra Times has reported more than 140 fires raging across NSW, burning over 65,000 hectares.
The weather forecast today was 28C, which was 10 degrees cooler than yesterday (38C), but weekend temperatures are expected to rise to 38C again. However, strong winds have increased the fire danger. Winds yesterday reached speeds of 83-90 kilometres per hour, with the wind gusts causing fallen trees and power lines – and temporary blackouts across the city. The heat also affects the elderly, the sick, and children the most, as they are susceptible to heat strokes and dehydration. Currently, 15 people have been hospitalized with heat-related illnesses.
The fire danger is expected to fall from extreme to very high in the ACT as temperatures and winds ease today, but as temperatures rise so will the fire danger. In other states, the fire danger has reached the category of “catastrophic” (uncontrollable and fast-moving fires) – and the Bureau of Meteorology has added additional colour shades to the temperature gauge: two shades of purple indicating over 50C.





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