Australian authorities declared a state of disaster on Saturday after bush?res destroyed houses and razed vast belts of forest in the country’s southeast.
temperatures soared past 40C as a heatwave blanketed the state of Victoria this week, with hot winds fanning some of the most dangerous ?re weather seen since the Black Summer bush?res of 2019-2020.
one of the most destructive bush?res ripped through almost 150,000 hectares (370,000 acres) near Longwood, a region cloaked in native forests. Fire crews have started tallying the damage, with early reports of at least 20 houses destroyed in the small town of Ruffy, about two hours’ drive north of state capital Melbourne. State premier Jacinta Allan on Saturday declared a state of disaster, giving ?re crews emergency powers to force evacuations. ‘It’s all about one thing: protecting Victorian lives,’ she said.