VICTORIAN firefighters and rural communities are bracing for a horror day with the temperature set to reach a maximum 36 degrees as emergency services continue to battle to contain two massive bushfires.
A blaze in Gippsland covering 60,000 hectares has already destroyed homes while a fire at Harrietville near Mount Feathertop in the state's northeast is threatening towns and ski resorts.
Forecast high temperatures and volatile winds, along with a plentiful dry fuel load, means there is also a risk of grassfires breaking out in central Victoria around Castlemaine, Maryborough and Avoca, and in the west between Horsham and Warrnambool.
Authorities have declared a total fire ban in the southwest district of the state.
Fire Services Commissioner Craig Lapsley said about 300km of containment lines had been established around the entire Gippsland blaze.
A northeasterly wind is predicted to change to a northwesterly late on Thursday, which could threaten the Maffra district, Coongulla and Newry.
A southwesterly wind change is expected late on Thursday night or early Friday morning.
At the ski resort of Falls Creek residents are on a Watch and Act alert and have been told that a change of wind direction overnight could send a fire towards the village.
Mr Lapsley said people in these areas should be aware for the potential of the fires to spread and the importance of keeping up to date with local warnings and advice.
Falls Creek local Debbie Howie told AAP that off-mountain employees who live at Mt Beauty have been told not to come to work on Thursday.
The village's annual Australia Day dragon boat races on Rocky Valley Lake have been cancelled.
She said there are a couple of hundred people at the resort as well as a team of well-trained locals who make up the local CFA unit who will be called on to defend lives and property if the bushfire makes up the mountain.
Neighbouring Mt Hotham is also in the firing line in the event of a wind change.
Wind speed and wind direction will be the key with the potential for embers to be carried ahead of the main fire front.
"The fire has the potential to travel in three different ways if it does break containment lines," Mr Lapsley said.
"It could be embers dropping from the sky that sees new fires start."
Victoria Police have been refining night evacuation plans with text alerts set to be to be sent out to communities before people would usually go to bed.
Mr Lapsley said wildfires at night carry a lot of difficulties.
"The option of leaving and not being there if you've got the potential of fire moving around in your environment at night, I would suggest one of the best options is not to be there," he said.
Anda sedang membaca artikel tentang
Victoria braces for a scorcher
Dengan url
http://soloberitaku.blogspot.com/2013/01/victoria-braces-for-scorcher.html
Anda boleh menyebar luaskannya atau mengcopy paste-nya
Victoria braces for a scorcher
namun jangan lupa untuk meletakkan link
Victoria braces for a scorcher
sebagai sumbernya
0 komentar:
Posting Komentar