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The perfect storm sets in Australia The australian prime minister apologizes for his vacation in Hawaii during the wave of fires photo gallery in The fires of Australia, in pictures
Some 100,000 people had to flee from five towns close to Melbourne this Monday as the wave of massive wildfires continues to plague Australia.
in Addition to a volunteer firefighter died battling the blaze in the interior of the country. The authorities of Melbourne, the second most populated city of the country, declared a state of emergency by fire and urged residents to “act immediately to survive”.
In Bundoora, 16 kilometres north of the centre of the city and the headquarters of the two main university campuses of Australia, the “fire was threatening homes and lives,” reported the emergency services of the state of Victoria. “You are in danger and need to act immediately to survive,” the agency said residents in a message.
local media showed images of fire flying over residential neighborhoods and of families dipping their homes with water with the hope of being able to stop the advance of the flames.
this Is the last emergency declaration in Australia in this devastating station fire, which has been exacerbated by a prolonged drought and climate change.
In New South Wales (south-east) a volunteer firefighter died and two others suffered burns after more than five hours fighting the fire in the south-west of Sydney, reported services, rural fire.
In total, eleven people have died, more than a thousand homes have been razed and more than three million hectares (an area larger than Belgium) have been burnt to death.
conditions worsened on Friday with strong winds and temperatures that soared throughout the country, reaching up to 47 degrees in some western states and 40 in all the regions, including the temperate island state of Tasmania, in the south.
More than twelve huge flames they also advance uncontrolled on the inside, in the region of Gippsland, where the authorities said that “several” of the 30.00 tourists that visit each year to the area, they have received warnings of evacuation.
Some of the fires are of such intensity that hundreds of firefighters have had to back up out of the line of fire of a few thousand kilometers.
The responsible for fighting the fires in Gippsland, Ben Rankin, felt that it was “dangerous” for firefighters to stay in areas of bushland, and described the situation as “very intense.”
authorities warned tourists in Gippsland that the fires might result in the court of the last road still open.
The commissioner of the emergency services of the state of Victoria, Andrew Crisp, said for his part that the residents and tourists in the area probably have to stay stranded because now “it’s too late to leave”. In addition to not “possible” to get aid to all visitors of the area, he stressed.
The neighbouring region of South Australia is also suffering “catastrophic” conditions for fires. The director of the service of the state fire, Brenton Eden, said that probably this Monday will be a day to “very dangerous” for the people of the region, with thunderstorms “dry” —that generate thunder and lightning, but not rain— that have already caused several fires, including one in front of level of emergency on the island Kangaroo.
it Is expected also that the conditions to deteriorate in New South Wales, where this Monday morning there were a hundred active fire, 40 of them without control.
Sydney and other major cities have been embroiled, in addition, in toxic smoke for weeks, which has forced the children to remain in their homes and has caused the cancellation of major professional sporting events.
The capital Canberra has had to cancel the fireworks on New Year for a prohibition that affects the territory of the capital, a measure supported by several localities of the region. Sydney has circulated a petition to cancel the famous fireworks on New Year’s and use that money to fight the fires that it has raised 270.000 signatures, but the authorities have said that will keep.
