Eight months after the jungle: Australia is no longer burning

Sigh of relief in Australia: In the state of New South Wales, the worst affected by wildfires, officials say there has been no catastrophic fire for the first time in eight months. According to the fire department, there is no longer a fire. The wildfire season did not officially end until March 31, Fire Department spokesman Greg Allen said last week. An area of ​​5.5 million hectares was destroyed in the southeastern state. A total of 12.5 million hectares were burned in Australia over the course of a month, which is more than a third of the area of ​​Germany.

How Australia was during the fire:

33 people died, 3,000 homes were destroyed, and probably more than a billion animals died. Prime Minister Scott Morrison spoke of a “black summer” for the country. The situation was particularly dire in January and in the Southeast. Over the past few weeks, the rains have helped ease the situation, but it has also triggered floods.

In the state of Victoria, all major fires are under control, the fire department said. But the risk of fire is still there. It was said in the west of the continent: No more fire action. Now the task of cleaning must be tackled everywhere. This includes renovating homes and courtyards, repairing streets and removing flammable materials. (dpa)