Canberra, January 10 — An unprecedented heat wave since 2020, with temperatures close to 45 degrees Celsius, has sparked dozens of fires in the state of Victoria, in southeastern Australia, where three people are currently missing.
According to reports, the city of Longwood has been the hardest hit, with at least 20 homes destroyed and several roads blocked by smoke.
The fires, which started on Monday, January 5, have spread in multiple directions and are even threatening border areas with New South Wales.
Meanwhile, firefighting brigades are combating other fires in the southern part of the island nation, where the thermometer reads 42 degrees Celsius.
The regional government reported this Friday that 35,000 homes are without electricity and more than 60 new fires have been reported in rural areas, while hundreds of residents have been ordered to evacuate due to “catastrophic conditions.”
As a precautionary measure, schools and local businesses have been forced to close their doors.
The situation, still out of control, brings back memories of the devastating "Black Summer" of 2020, which left 33 dead and about three thousand homes destroyed, and of the tragic 2009 episode, when the flames claimed 173 lives in Victoria.
The fire season in Australia usually concentrates between December and March, but this year the intensity has put the country on maximum alert.
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