FOREST FIRES 2
TOPIC: AUSTRALIA FOREST FIRES
COST: OVER 130 BILLION
DATES: JUNE 2019 – MAY 2020
BURNED AREA: APX 18,636,079 HECTARES
CAUSES:
LIGHTNING STRIKES
ALLEGED ARSON
DROUGHT
GLOBAL WARMING
BUILDINGS DESTROYED: 9352 +
3500 HOMES
5852 OUT BUILDINGS
DEATHS: APX 500
The 2019–20 Australian bushfire season, colloquially known as Black
Summer, was a period of unusually intense bushfires in many parts of Australia.
In June 2019, the Queensland Fire and Emergency Service acting director warned of
the potential for an early start to the bushfire season which normally starts in August.
The warning was based on the Northern Australia bushfire seasonal outlook noting
exceptional dry conditions and a lack of soil moisture, combined with early fires in
central Queensland. Throughout the summer, hundreds of fires burnt, mainly in the
southeast of the country. The major fires peaked during December–January.
As of 9 March 2020, the fires burnt an estimated
18.6 million hectares (46 million acres; 186,000 square kilometres; 72,000 square
miles), destroyed over 5,900 buildings (including 2,779 homes) and killed at least 34
people. Nearly three billion terrestrial vertebrates alone – the vast majority
being reptiles – were affected and some endangered species were believed to be
driven to extinction. At its peak, air quality dropped to hazardous levels in all
southern and eastern states. The cost of dealing with the bushfires is expected to
exceed the A$4.4 billion of the 2009 Black Saturday fires, and tourism sector
revenues fell by more than A$1 billion. However, economists estimated that the
Australian bushfires may cost over A$103 billion in property damage and economic
losses, making the bushfires Australia's costliest natural disaster to date. Nearly 80
percent of Australians were affected either directly or indirectly by the bushfires. By 7
January 2020, the smoke had moved approximately 11,000 kilometres (6,800 mi)
across the South Pacific Ocean to Chile and Argentina. As of 2 January
2020, NASA estimated that 306 million tonnes (337 million short tons) of CO2 had
been emitted.
From September 2019 to March 2020, fires heavily impacted various regions of the
state of New South Wales. In eastern and north-eastern Victoria large areas of forest
burnt out of control for four weeks before the fires emerged from the forests in late
December. Multiple states of emergency were declared across New South
Wales, Victoria, and the Australian Capital Territory. Reinforcements from all over
Australia were called in to assist fighting the fires and relieve exhausted local crews
in New South Wales. The Australian Defence Force was mobilised to provide air
support to the firefighting effort and to provide manpower and logistical
support. Firefighters, supplies and equipment from Canada, New Zealand,
Singapore and the United States, among others, helped fight the fires, especially in
New South Wales.
During the ensuing crisis, an air tanker and two helicopters crashed during
firefighting operations, the air tanker crash resulting in the deaths of the three crew.
Two fire trucks were caught in fatal incidents caused directly by fire conditions, killing
three fire fighters.
By 4 March 2020, all fires in New South Wales had been extinguished completely (to
the point where there were no fires in the state for the first time since July 2019), and
the Victoria fires had all been contained. The last fire of the season occurred in Lake
Clifton, Western Australia, in early May.
There has been considerable debate regarding the underlying cause of the intensity
and scale of the fires, including the role of fire management practices and climate
change, which during the peak of the crisis attracted significant international
attention, despite previous Australian fires burning much larger areas (1974–75) or
killing more people (2008–09). Politicians visiting fire impacted areas received mixed
responses, in particular Prime Minister Scott Morrison. An estimated A$500 million
was donated by the public at large, international organisations, public figures and
celebrities for victim relief and wildlife recovery. Convoys of donated food, clothing
and livestock feed were sent to affected areas.
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