It seems apocalyptic to Down Under. Thousands of people were forced to flee their homes in the state of Western Australia this week as wildfires broke through an area near the city of Perth, just as the city began a strict closure due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Officials say the Wooroloo fire, which has a perimeter of 80 kilometers, doubled in size overnight and has already almost destroyed it 20,000 hectares. More than 70 homes they have been lost since the fire started Monday evening, inclusive 80% of all properties in a single rural area.
On Wednesday, at a press conference, the Prime Minister of Western Australia, Mark McGowan dit the state was in an “unprecedented situation.”
“We are fighting disasters on two fronts: the devastating fires and the Covid-19 pandemic,” McGowan said.
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The city and parts of Western Australia were already under strict five-day closure after a hotel security guard used it as a quarantine facility in Perth tested positive for coronavirus on Monday. It may seem excessive for a single case, but such aggressive measures have kept Australia’s total death during the pandemic in less than 1,000.
Forty of Australia’s fourth-largest cities were scheduled to rise on Friday, but officials told residents evacuation orders and personal safety during the fire overturned any government pandemic closure orders. . The United States faced a similar situation last year (minus the blockade) forest fires broke out throughout the West, forcing widespread evacuations even when the pandemic raged. Fortunately, Australia’s pandemic is more controlled, but evacuations run the risk of upsetting the delicate balance the country has achieved.
“Make it clear: I urge people to stay informed and prepare,” said Western Australian Police Commissioner Chris Dawson they told residents Wednesday. “If he is threatened, leave his property and go to the right places. Do not stay at the property if you believe you must comply with covid-19 “rules.
It’s summer in Australia and the bushfire season has become increasingly destructive as the planet warms. Devastating fires last year it killed at least 34 people and burned for 48 million acres. Scientists estimate that a dropping the jaw 3 billion animals also died or were displaced, pushing 113 species into the edge of extinction.
Last year was the country fourth warmest year recorded, Said the Australian Meteorological Office last month. For Western Australia, the rank was even higher, with the state experiencing its second warmest year. Lesley Hughes, a member of the Australian Council on Climate Change and an expert on bushfires, said in a statement that “in recent months, the southwest has received very little rainfall compared to the rest of the country. This is part of a long-term drying trend, with winter rainfall declining by 20% since the 1970s. ”
This coincides with the growing serious situation not only for the state but for the whole of Australia. A report released last year showed that climate change aggravated the hot, dry conditions that caused the intense bushfire season by up to 30 percent. Rising temperatures will only make the landscape more flammable.