Watch: Thousands flee their homes as Australia bushfires move towards the east coast
Even a firefighting crew had to take shelter in their vehicle ‘as the fire front passed through’.
Tens of thousands of vacationers fled seaside towns on Australia’s east coast ahead of advancing bushfires, as military ships and helicopters began rescuing thousands more trapped by the blazes https://t.co/kJ6PVyCFoH pic.twitter.com/uSnHUcsAgg
— Reuters (@Reuters) January 2, 2020
Att least seven people have been killed in the latest bout of bushfires that have hit Australia’s coastal areas this week, BBC reported.
Forty-three homes in East Gippsland, Victoria were destroyed in the fire, while another 176 were destroyed in New South Wales, the report added. The smoke from the January 1 fires caused an orange tint in the skies of even faraway places.
Here are some scenes of the destruction caused by the bushfires, and the rescue operations that followed.
🇦🇺 Fire and rescue crews battle raging blazes in #Australia as authorities launch a major operation to reach thousands of people stranded in seaside towns 🧐 pic.twitter.com/Kobtb4zB4Q
— THE HERETIC (@admit2sin) January 1, 2020
The effort to rescue and feed thousands of people stuck in isolated towns in Victoria's fire-ravaged east has started. The military arrived in East Gippsland on Wednesday and helicopters and navy ships are helping get evacuees off the beach at Mallacoota. @cassiezervos #7NEWS pic.twitter.com/ceaHDx6Ym4
— 7NEWS Australia (@7NewsAustralia) January 2, 2020
My last day of the decade felt like the apocalypse. Been covering the Australian bushfires for the last 6 weeks, but haven’t seen anything like yesterdays fire that decimated the town of Conjola, NSW. #bushfirecrisis #AustralianBushfires #NSWisburning work for @nytimes pic.twitter.com/KmVKqDMKsf
— matthew abbott (@mattabbottphoto) January 1, 2020
Australia Is on Fire
— Statis (@statisring) January 2, 2020
The crew from Fire and Rescue NSW Station 509 Wyoming recorded this video showing the moment their truck was overrun by the bushfire burning South of Nowra. The crew was forced to shelter in their truck as the fire front passed through. #australia #fires pic.twitter.com/zqREsEGdHa