Australia has been gripped by bushfires since September 2019, and they don’t seem to be letting up. As of December 10, over 100 fires are ablaze in New South Wales and Victoria states (many of which having been burning since November).
The video above provides an aerial view of the bushfires across southeastern Australia. Not only is there a thick fog of putrid smoke above areas of the country, but citizens are also facing the strictest water restrictions to have been imposed in over a decade.
Bushfires in Australia are common, but their impact is devastating and experts say the 2019 fires have been unprecedented. Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison has defended his government’s climate policies and their role in the seemingly uncontrollable fires, saying Australia was “doing our bit.”
While there is no official evacuation order, numerous residents have abandoned their communities, Hawkesbury Mayor Barry Calvert told Reuters.
“It is eerie, many people have decided to leave, and I’m going to do the same,” said Mayor Calvert. “I’ve been through this before about 20 years ago when I stood outside my house looking at flames 50 feet high, I decided then that I would leave early if it happened again,” he added.
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Meet this koala, who was rescued from the deadly bushfires in Australia
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