• Fire trucks are seen during a bushfire in Werombi, 50km southwest of Sydney, Australia. Reuters
    Fire trucks are seen during a bushfire in Werombi, 50km southwest of Sydney, Australia. Reuters
  • A handout photo made available by NASA Earth Observatory of a satellite image showing fires burning near the coast of New South Wales, near Canberra and areas north to the border with Queensland, Australia. EPA
    A handout photo made available by NASA Earth Observatory of a satellite image showing fires burning near the coast of New South Wales, near Canberra and areas north to the border with Queensland, Australia. EPA
  • People climb the Sydney Harbour Bridge during a 'Bridge Climb' guided tour in Sydney, Australia. Most of NSW remains under severe or very high fire danger warnings as more than 50 fires continue to burn across the state. Getty Images
    People climb the Sydney Harbour Bridge during a 'Bridge Climb' guided tour in Sydney, Australia. Most of NSW remains under severe or very high fire danger warnings as more than 50 fires continue to burn across the state. Getty Images
  • A long exposure photograph shows the Three Sisters rock formation as flames from the Kowmung River fire and the Green Wattle Creek fire are visible from Echo Point lookout in Katoomba, New South Wales, Australia. EPA
    A long exposure photograph shows the Three Sisters rock formation as flames from the Kowmung River fire and the Green Wattle Creek fire are visible from Echo Point lookout in Katoomba, New South Wales, Australia. EPA
  • A firefighter from the Rural Fire Service douses a burnt out tree with water near Oakdale, southwest of Sydney, Australia. AP Photo
    A firefighter from the Rural Fire Service douses a burnt out tree with water near Oakdale, southwest of Sydney, Australia. AP Photo
  • The sun sets behind St Mary's Cathedral in Sydney on December 6, 2019 in Sydney, Australia. Getty Images
    The sun sets behind St Mary's Cathedral in Sydney on December 6, 2019 in Sydney, Australia. Getty Images
  • The Three Sisters rock formation is visible as people watch smoke from the Green Wattle Creek fire from Echo Point lookout in Katoomba, New South Wales, Australia. EPA
    The Three Sisters rock formation is visible as people watch smoke from the Green Wattle Creek fire from Echo Point lookout in Katoomba, New South Wales, Australia. EPA
  • People watch as smoke from the Green Wattle Creek fire is seen from Echo Point lookout in Katoomba, as bushfires continue to blaze in New South Wales, Australia. Reuters
    People watch as smoke from the Green Wattle Creek fire is seen from Echo Point lookout in Katoomba, as bushfires continue to blaze in New South Wales, Australia. Reuters
  • Firefighters from the Rural Fire Service cut up a tree that fell across the road near Oakdale, southwest of Sydney, Australia. AP Photo
    Firefighters from the Rural Fire Service cut up a tree that fell across the road near Oakdale, southwest of Sydney, Australia. AP Photo
  • A local man hoses down fire retardant from a vehicle during a bushfire in Werombi, 50km south west of Sydney, Australia. EPA
    A local man hoses down fire retardant from a vehicle during a bushfire in Werombi, 50km south west of Sydney, Australia. EPA

'Mega fire' in Australia could take weeks to put out

Wildfires have killed at least four people and destroyed more than 680 homes across eastern Australia this season

Reuters

December 07, 2019

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A giant blaze that has blanketed Sydney, Australia's largest city, in a hazardous smoke may take many weeks to put out, fire services said late on Friday, with the whole region fighting nearly 100 wildfires and expectations that the worst is yet to come.

While common in Australia during the hot summer, which begins in December, bushfires have begun much earlier this season, blamed on soaring temperatures, dry winds and suspected arson.

The most recent blaze north of Sydney, burning across 335,000 hectares, or 830,000 acres, has caused the cancellation of many outdoor weekend activities as smoke and ash have lingered over the city.

"These will take many weeks to put out - and only when we get good rain," the New South Wales Rural Fire Service said in a statement late on Friday.

Wildfires have killed at least four people and destroyed more than 680 homes across eastern Australia, according to authorities.

Although the heat and wind eased a bit on Saturday near Sydney, RFS Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons told Australia's Sky News television that it was going to be "another tough day for everybody involved."

Some 2,000 firefighters have been deployed to fight 96 fires throughout the state, whose landscape has been parched by three years of drought. Only about half of the fires were contained.

"People are nervous and they have a right to be," Phil Koperberg, founder of the Rural Fire Service, said, according to The Sydney Herald Morning. He warned that with the forecast calling for more dry conditions and more heat, "the worst is yet to come."