WORLD NEWS:- ‘Night from hell’: Australia fires change direction as cool southerly sweeps NSW coast

170

Key points:
• A state of emergency has been declared in New South Wales;
• Fires have arrived on Sydney’s north shore;
• Greater Sydney, Greater Hunter and Illawarra/Shoalhaven face “catastrophic fire danger”;
• There are 73 fires burning in NSW, 37 of those are uncontained;
• A cool change dropped temperatures significantly and changed direction of the fires;
• 65 fires are burning in Queensland;
• Hundreds of schools across both states were closed yesterday;

 

[smartslider3 slider=3]

8.30am:

Authorities have blasted the “sheer stupidity” of some people amid “catastrophic” bushfires after people were caught flying drones, lighting fires and ignoring the advice. Civil Aviation Safety Authority spokesman Peter Gibson slammed the use of a personal drone on Monday night after it was spotted hovering near smoke in Sydney’s North Shore.

“There are no circumstances where an unauthorized drone should be flown near a fire,” Gibson said. “It is sheer stupidity as it puts lives at risk, both on the ground and in the air.” Although no fire was found, the drone could have seriously hampered firefighting efforts, the Killara rural fire brigade said in a post on Facebook.

“If a fire was confirmed at the location we would not be able to request any aerial assistance due to the sighting of a drone near the fire,” the brigade posted in a statement on Facebook.

“Please do not fly drones near fires, you are risking lives, if you fly then we can’t.” Flying drones near bushfires is illegal and could attract a fine of more than $10,000 and lead to prosecution.

The Killara brigade also saw a number of vehicles coming to “sightsee” the fire which the RFS crew said caused traffic chaos and hampered their ability to respond. “Don’t drive to where the fire trucks are going,” NSW RFS spokesman Matt Sun said, adding that drones should never be used near fire crews.

“A mid-air collision with a firefighting aircraft could be catastrophic,” Sun said. “People shouldn’t be going out of their way to try and get photos of these situations, they shouldn’t be anywhere near the bush at all, it is that dangerous,” he said.

‘Long way to go’

An emergency warning has been issued for the Hillville fire after a southeasterly change fanned the flames from the Australian fires in a new direction, while the NSW Fire Commissioner warns there is a “long way to go.”

In the early hours of Wednesday morning, the NSW Rural Fire Service (NSW RFS) said the Hillville Road fire, southwest of Taree, was spreading quickly towards Nabiac and Failford. “If you are in the area of Hillville, Nabiac and Failford and surrounding areas, seek shelter as the fire approaches. Protect yourself from the heat of the fire,” it said.

It comes after a southerly change sweeping up the NSW coast led to a dramatic drop in temperatures. NSW RFS Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons said the cooler temperatures would “certainly bring some welcome relief” however firefighters were not out of the woods yet.

“We’re expecting to see increased fire dangers stay around for a little while yet,” he said on Tuesday evening.

“There’s certainly some welcome relief and a dramatic drop in temperatures behind the change, which is correlating with a significant reduction in the overall fire danger rating. Having said that, the winds are still strong and they’re still gusty.”

While temperatures dropped 10 degrees overnight, officials say the fire danger isn’t over. Photo / nzherald

After a dangerous day on Tuesday that saw “catastrophic conditions realised” in the Greater Sydney, Greater Hunter and Illawarra/Shoalhaven areas, he said “the work is far from over” and fire crews had a “long way to go” in terms of getting the fires under control.

Commissioner Fitzsimmons praised the work of fire crews, the Bureau of Meteorology and those in the community who have helped with the firefighting effort. Ironically, smoke from fires served as an “insulation blanket” that prevented winds from fanning fires as quickly as they might have done otherwise, he said.

Up to a dozen homes were damaged or destroyed, and the bill for the fires is estimated to reach more than $40 million, according to the Insurance Council of Australia.

There’s no rainfall on the horizon for NSW. Photo / Nzherald

Wednesday’s weather forecast is for “severe fire danger” in New England and “very high fire danger” in Northern Slopes according to the NSW Bureau of Meteorology reports.

Large parts of the NSW coast, including Sydney, have been issued warnings for dust and smoke haze. For Sydney, a poor air quality forecast has been issued by the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment (DPIE). Up to a dozen homes were damaged or destroyed, and the bill for the fires is estimated to reach more than $40 million, according to the Insurance Council of Australia.

Homes in Sydney covered in red fire retardant. Photo / nzherald

Wednesday’s weather forecast is for “severe fire danger” in New England and “very high fire danger” in Northern Slopes according to the NSW Bureau of Meteorology reports.

Large parts of the NSW coast, including Sydney, have been issued warnings for dust and smoke haze. For Sydney, a poor air quality forecast has been issued by the Department of Planning, Industry and Environment (DPIE).

Meanwhile, authorities have blasted the “sheer stupidity” of people flying drones, lighting fires and ignoring advice. Civil Aviation Safety Authority spokesman Peter Gibson slammed the use of a personal drone on Monday night after it was spotted hovering near smoke in Sydney’s North Shore.

“There are no circumstances where an unauthorised drone should be flown near a fire,” Mr Gibson said. “It is sheer stupidity as it puts lives at risk, both on the ground and in the air.” Although no fire was found, the drone could have seriously hampered firefighting efforts, the Killara rural fire brigade said in a post on Facebook.

“If a fire was confirmed at the location we would not be able to request any aerial assistance due to the sighting of a drone near the fire,” the brigade posted in a statement on Facebook.

“Please do not fly drones near fires, you are risking lives, if you fly then we can’t.” Flying drones near bushfires is illegal and could attract a fine of more than $10,000 and lead to prosecution.

The Killara brigade also saw a number of vehicles coming to “sightsee” the fire which the RFS crew said caused traffic chaos and hampered their ability to respond. “Don’t drive to where the fire trucks are going.” NSW RFS spokesman Matt Sun said, adding that drones should never be used near fire crews.

“A mid-air collision with a firefighting aircraft could be catastrophic,” Mr Sun said. “People shouldn’t be going out of their way to try and get photos of these situations, they shouldn’t be anywhere near the bush at all, it is that dangerous,” he said.

Source: Nzherald.

Featured Image: A change of wind direction cooled temperatures down signifcantly overnight. Photo / Supplied

- Advertisement - [smartslider3 slider=4]