Thousands of people stranded on a coastal strip. In Australia, tourists have been forced to seek refuge on beaches in the southeast of the country to escape the violent fires that ravage the region.
Many people had no choice but to go to the beaches to escape the fires that surround this coastal city. In all, some 4,000 vacationers and residents found themselves trapped on the seaside of the seaside town of Mallacoota.
Hundreds of degrees
"We have three response teams in Mallacoota who will take care of the people on the beach there," said Commissioner Andrew Crisp, in charge of emergency services for the state of Victoria, who said "Very worried about this group which finds itself isolated". Preparations are said to be underway for evacuation by sea or land, if necessary.
Some residents have fled offshore aboard their boats, trying to escape one of the worst days ever recorded since the start of these devastating fires in September. On social networks, locals claimed to have preventively put on life jackets in case they were forced to take refuge in the water to escape the flames.
This photo needs to be the front page of every paper in Australia for the first day of the new decade. Welcome to the 20's, Australia. #mallacoota #australiaburns pic.twitter.com/6bcswM3yeU
- Dan (@danbakes) December 31, 2019In some regions ravaged by fire, temperatures can reach hundreds of degrees, killing anyone nearby before the flames even reach them. The ocean is "their last resort," according to the Victoria State Emergency Services.
Alerts for tourists
Dozens of property have been destroyed since Monday and at least seven people are missing in the states of New South Wales and Victoria, located in south-eastern Australia. In some areas, the fires are so intense and the smoke so thick that aerial reconnaissance and intervention by water bombers had to be stopped, said firefighters in charge of rural New South Wales.
In Mallacoota, plunged into darkness, the authorities explained that these fires were the result of severe thunderstorms and "embers".
Firefighters were deployed to protect those trapped. In recent days, the authorities have continued to alert the 30,000 tourists who have come to spend their summer holidays in the region, inciting them to leave this area which is one of the hundreds currently ravaged by fires across the immense island. -continent.
Sydney and Melbourne in danger
Unprecedented fires have ravaged Australia since September, but since Monday, rising temperatures and strong winds have fueled them. They have approached cities like Sydney and Melbourne, which have several million inhabitants. On Monday, around 100,000 people had to flee five suburbs of Melbourne due to the advance of the fires. In total, eleven people have died since the beginning of September of the fires which destroyed a thousand houses and more than three million hectares, an area larger than Belgium.
Australia is used to forest fires in the southern summer, but this year they were particularly early and violent due to an extended dry spell. Scientists point to the consequences of global warming.
World
Australia: Sydney faces 'public health emergency' from toxic fumes
World
Australia: Contested for fire management, Prime Minister visits front
- World
- Video
- Fire
- Australia