With winds driving embers and smoke thick enough to blanket the morning sky of Mallacoota in a deep shade of blood-red, thousands of residents have been advised to go into the water as the bushfire slithers closer!
After residents woke to the eerily dark morning sky, officials were quick to issue eight emergency warnings in Victoria and in New South Wales. In addition to this, NSW has also been bestowed with the ill fate of having to comprehend nine watch and act fires.
As of right now, 4,000 residents are trapped in a beach and are waiting for further instructions, however, residents are starting to lose hope of receiving good news Since there is a possibility of more than a handful of houses falling prey to the growing fires. Emergency sirens are surrounding the town, and the threat of the fire increases as it advances its purge of burning everything in its way. And unfortunately, 72,000 hectares have already been touched by its wrath.
Moreover, the fire has also been so fierce that it has cut power to the town, with AusNet Services reporting 5700 properties in East Gippsland and another 1800 in Northeast Victoria to have no power as well.
Australia is burning. Lives lost. Homes lost. National animals headed for extinction. The last day of 2019 has looked like an apocalypse for the Aussies. Absolute devastation. #AustralianFires #nationalcrisis #NYE2020 #bushfirecrisis
— Travel Center (@TravelCenter_UK) December 31, 2019
So far, two males: identified as father and son, have been reported to have lost their lives to the fire and grave concerns are being held for the man who is still missing. Two firefighters have suffered burns to their faces and are now being treated at the Concord Hospital and two male associates in a fire truck — aged 39 and 52 — suffered injuries. While the 59-year-old man appears to have taken comparatively less damage, the same cannot be said for the other! As the 39-year old still remains in a serious condition at the Alfred Hospital in Melbourne.
The next hours will be critical according to officials, as firefighters give it their all in putting down the deadly blazes, warnings have been deemed mandatory, as it is no longer optional. Embers and heat fuelled blows of wind have acted as the foundation for causing collateral damage and while firefighters are doing their best, it’s not too far off to say that the fate of thousands of residents lie at how the rates of wind fluctuate.
In a time that is ominous as this, we hope that you heed all warnings if you are in or even close to the evacuation zone. As the fires grow into a threat big enough to be labelled as a life or death situation, it is, unfortunately, compulsory to do what you have to! Even if it means leaving some of your belongings behind. Your life matters, so please stick to the safer side!
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