Hundreds of firefighters battle wildfire in Western Australia
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A high-risk bushfire season is under way in Australia due to an El Nino weather event.
PHOTO: AFP
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PERTH - Hundreds of firefighters battled an out-of-control bushfire near Western Australia’s capital Perth on Jan 14, prompting the authorities to urge residents in the fire’s path to flee.
More than 25 bushfires were burning in the vast state, with residents in the rural shires of Gingin and nearby Chittering, about 60km north of Perth, at risk from the fast-moving blaze, according to the fire authorities.
A high-risk bushfire season is under way in Australia due to an El Nino weather event, associated with events such as cyclones, droughts, heatwaves and wildfires.
A state Department of Fire and Emergency Services spokesperson said 240 firefighters were battling the blaze, which was at emergency level – the highest threat rating.
“If the way is clear, leave now for a safer place,” the agency said on its website.
The blaze, which has burned through 417ha of bushland, broke out on Jan 13.
The nation’s weather forecaster has issued a warning for “extreme fire danger” in some parts of Western Australia state amid a heatwave alert in place since Jan 13.
In Perth, a maximum temperature of 35 deg C was forecast, more than 3 deg C above the city’s average January maximum, according to data from the weather forecaster.
Australia’s last two fire seasons have been quiet compared with the devastating 2019-2020 “Black Summer” of bushfires that razed an area the size of Turkey and killed 33 people. REUTERS
