Sydney surrounded by deadly wall of f ire
SYDNEY was surrounded by a deadly wall of fire last night as searing 40C (104F) temperatures and heavy winds fuelled one of the worst blazes in Australia’s history.
The catastrophic conditions led to more than 100 separate fires in New South Wales (NSW), the country’s most populous state. Six were registered at ‘emergency’ level.
Some major roads heading south and west from Sydney were closed and authorities asked people to delay travel at the start of the Christmas period due to the unpredictability of fires.
‘ Today is not the day to start your holiday,’ an NSW police spokesman said. ‘ Today has been an awful day,’ said NSW Rural Fire Services Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons, who rated conditions as ‘catastrophic’.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian declared a state of emergency on Thursday following the deaths of two volunteer firefighters from blazes that have been burning for two months. In South Australia, one person was found dead in a fire zone, bringing the death toll from the infernos to eight.
Australia has been fighting wildfires for weeks, with blazes destroying more than 700 homes and nearly three million acres of bushland. Meanwhile, Hollywood actor Chris Hemsworth and his actress wife Elsa Pataky sparked controversy by reportedly spending a fortune to keep the garden green at their mansion near Byron Bay in NSW. One neighbouring farmer told the Sydney Morning Herald: ‘I wish I had millions of dollars to buy that amount of water. All the demand has put the prices through the roof.’
Thor star Hemsworth and his wife, however, announced last week they were auctioning off a one- hour workout session for one lucky fan, with the proceeds being donated to local rural firefighters.