At the beginning of the season – which is currently spring in Australia – the state of Western Australia is exposed to a heatwave and widespread bushfires. Australian media reported on Thursday that ten homes burned near the famous city of Perth.
Dozens of residents were evacuated. Hundreds of people also lost power after the fire destroyed many power lines. The fire has already destroyed 1,500 hectares of land.
Temperatures up to 40 degrees
Large parts of Western Australia are experiencing an extremely early heatwave leading to record temperatures in some places. Temperatures are expected to reach 40 degrees in the coastal city of Perth on Thursday. According to the Australian Meteorological Service, these values are 12 to 14 degrees higher than the usual expectations for this time of year. After all, it’s only spring in Australia.
Strong wind
Emergency Services Minister Stephen Dawson said: “It may take some time for the fire to be under control.” Not only heat, but also strong winds make extinguishing difficult. More than 150 firefighters are deployed. The state of New South Wales in eastern Australia sent a firefighting plane to the west coast to provide support.
Deadliest wildfire season?
Australian authorities have been warning for weeks that the coming spring and summer could be the worst bushfire season since the devastating “Black Summer” of 2019-2020.
During the months of forest fires, nearly forty million hectares burned. 33 people were also killed. Then the most intense fires were recorded in December and January.
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