Australia: Wildfires are spreading in Queensland

In the state of Australia Queensland Dozens of people are being evacuated from several raging wildfires. Local emergency services said on Tuesday that the towns of Tara and Kogan, about 250 kilometers west of Brisbane, were particularly affected. Residents were asked to evacuate their homes immediately. “Your life may be in danger. “Driving fast is extremely dangerous,” Queensland Fire and Emergency Services wrote on X (formerly Twitter).

A resident told 9News his house was completely gutted. “The flames were seven meters high. That’s when I knew I was now homeless,” Sky News Australia reported. Emergency shelters have been set up near the victims. A bushfire is also spreading further south in the town of Millmerran, but is now almost under control, fire department spokesman Wayne Waldisbull said. Many houses were destroyed.

Meanwhile, the weather is very dangerous: “We are experiencing high temperatures and very low humidity, which makes fire behavior very unpredictable at the moment,” Valdisbul explained. Officials have announced a complete ban on open fires in more than 30 regions until Saturday.

It could be a fire

Since late afternoon (local time), several wildfires have been burning in Perth’s Kings Park on the west coast – one of the world’s largest city parks at around 400 hectares. Residents were asked to stay safe. Firefighters are working on the fire with helicopters. Arson may have been the cause, 7News Broadcasting reported, citing officials. King’s Park, surrounded by busy streets and buildings, is home to the Borough’s Botanic Gardens.

Last week, severe bushfires in neighboring New South Wales destroyed thousands of hectares of land. A man died trying to protect his farm from the fire. High temperatures and strong winds fueled repeated blazes in Sydney’s north-east.

Authorities had already warned weeks earlier that the Australian spring and summer would be the most violent bushfire season since the devastating “black summer” of 2019-2020. During that time, weeks of wildfires destroyed twelve million hectares of land, killing or driving countless animals.

© dpa-infocom, dpa:231024-99-677760/4