Source: CNN
Blue Mountains, Australia (CNN) — A swath of wildfires nearly 1,000 miles long coursed through the most populous state in Australia Tuesday, and firefighters fear the worse is yet to come.
“If our strategies don’t work and weather materializes tomorrow that is forecast … it could be absolutely devastating,” said Rural Fire Service (RFS) Deputy Commissioner Rob Rogers in New South Wales. “We lost a couple hundred homes the other day — we could get worse losses than that.”
Despite best efforts of firefighters and emergency services, Wednesday is expected to be “about as bad as it gets,” added Shane Fitzsimmons, RFS commissioner.
With high temperatures, low humidity and strong winds forecast, fire officials have urged residents to evacuate from the path of the fires. “Do not leave your decision to the last minute. Do not think fire can’t happen to you. Do not expect a fire truck,” Fitzsimmons said. “On days like tomorrow, there is every real potential that we could see more homes lost and more lives lost.”
Categories: Europe and Australia