Sydney - Australia's most populous state
declared its second emergency in as many months on Thursday as
extreme heat and strong winds stoked scores of uncontrolled
bushfires, some on Sydney's doorstep.
In the same week the continent recorded its hottest day on
record, thick smoke blanketed the harbour city, shrouded the
Opera House and brought many outdoor activities to a halt.
The state of emergency declaration gave firefighters broad
powers to control government resources, force evacuations, close
roads and shut down utilities across New South Wales, where 100
wildfires are burning.
With more than half of those fires uncontrolled and
temperatures forecast to hit 45 degrees Celsius (113°F) in some
areas, officials warned residents to be on high alert.
"The biggest concern over the next few days is the
unpredictability, with extreme wind conditions, extremely hot
temperatures," NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian told reporters in
Sydney.
Firefighters at a bushfire in Bilpin, New South Wales, Australia. Picture: Andrew Mitchell/Cottage Point Rural Fire Brigade via Reuters
Days out from Christmas, a time when many Australians head
to the coast for the holidays, Berejiklian warned people to
reconsider travel plans.
"Please do your research before you embark anywhere across
the state," she said. "Please make sure you are prepared to
change your plans should circumstances change."
Australia has been battling wildfires across much of its
east coast for weeks, leaving six people dead, more than 680
homes destroyed and nearly 3 million acres (1.2 million
hectares) of bushland burnt.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has weathered a storm of
criticism on social media in recent days for going on an
overseas holiday during the emergency, adding to criticism that
his government is failing to deliver adequate climate change
policies.
As the media reported Morrison was in Hawaii with his family
to enjoy a break, about 500 protestors gathered outside his
official Sydney residence to demand urgent action on climate
change. Morrison's office refused to confirm his whereabouts.
One protestor carried a sign reading, "ScoMo, where the
bloody hell are you?" referencing the leader's nickname and a
decade-old international advertisement for Tourism Australia
that was banned in several countries because the language was
deemed offensive.
Some 1,700 firefighters have been deployed across NSW, but
officials warned that was still not enough to cover every
potential danger and urged people in high risk areas to evacuate
while it was still safe to do so.
"There are simply not enough fire trucks for every house. If
you call for help, you may not get it," the Rural Fire Service
said in a statement. "Do not expect a fire truck. Do not expect
a knock on the door. Do not expect a phone call."
The current state of emergency will last for seven days,
while a total fire ban that has been in place since Tuesday will
remain until midnight on Saturday.
SMOKY SYDNEY
Three major fires were burning around Sydney, which is home
to more than 5 million people. One megafire in the Kanangra Boyd
National Park to the city's southwest had crept to the very
outskirts of Campbelltown, a suburb of 157,000 people.
Sydney is ringed by large areas of bushland, much of which
remains tinder dry following the driest Spring on record.
A combination photo shows a general view of Sydney Harbour and smoke from bushfires obscuring Sydney Harbour. Pictures: Stephen Coates/Reuters
Many commuters have donned breathing masks in recent weeks
as air quality has plunged to hazardous levels not previously
seen in the city.
NSW Ambulance Commissioner Dominic Morgan said the service
had experienced a 10% surge in call-outs for patients suffering
respiratory conditions over the past week and urged susceptible
people to remain indoors and keep their medication close.
The heightened fire danger in NSW comes as Australia is in
the grip of a nationwide heat wave.
The country recorded its highest average maximum temperature
of 40.9C (105.6F) on Tuesday, and Bureau of Meteorology data
shows that record was likely to be exceeded again this week.
The extreme conditions have been exacerbated by a warming
climate, which is triggering large-scale protests in a country
that has been committed to exploiting its vast coal reserves.
Australia's low-lying Pacific neighbours have been
particularly critical of the coal-rich nation's climate policies
following modest progress at the U.N. climate talks in Madrid.
"It was particularly disappointing to see our Pacific
cousins in Australia actively standing in the way of progress at
a time when we have been watching in horror as their own country
is ablaze," Marshall Islands president Hilda Heine said in a
statement on Wednesday.