Catastrophic bushfires in Australia: Queensland and New South Wales declare state emergency

Queensland, November 11: Following the widespread bush fires in Australia, the states of New South Wales and Queensland have declared a state of emergency. More than 120 bush fires are burning across the two states. 

Bushfires have already killed three people and destroyed more than 150 homes. Thousands have been displaced by three days of dangerous weather conditions and brought a catastrophic threat to heavily populated areas of the nation's east. Officials say the worst danger will come for areas around Sydney tomorrow, the nation's largest city. The catastrophic warning is in place across the greater Sydney area and regions to the city's north and south. A seven-day state of emergency has been declared in New South Wales, where strong winds, high temperatures and low humidity have prompted the Rural Fire Service to issue a 'catastrophic' fire warning for the greater Sydney region.

In New South Wales, the blazes have scorched 9,70,000 hectares of land and destroyed 150 houses. Nine homes have been razed in Queensland. New South Wales fire authorities have issued the maximum level of warning for the first time since new fire warnings were introduced a decade ago, after Australia's deadly Black Saturday disaster.

Bushfires are a common and deadly threat in Australia’s hot, dry summers but the current severe outbreak, well before the summer peak, has caught many by surprise. It's the worst threat level ever issued for Sydney under the current system, which was introduced in 2009. The city is home to around 4.6 million people, but the greatest fire risk lies in rural areas outside the city center. They include the greater Hunter area, Illawarra, and Shoalhaven, which are also facing "catastrophic" fire threats.

 

Australia is experiencing one of its worst droughts in decades. The hot, dry weather has created a huge amount of fuel for the fires, which are being fanned by strong winds.