Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Bushfires in Victoria, Australia
The Boston Globe's Big Picture blog has these amazingly beautiful, madly horrifying pictures of the Australian Bushfires.
The state of Victoria in southern Australia has recently been hit with hundreds of bush fires during a record-breaking heatwave - temperatures well above 38°C (100°F). Unfortunately, these fires have proved to be the deadliest in Australian history, with at least 166 deaths reported so far. The fires mostly appear to have been started by lightning - however a few appear to have been arson, and are under investigation - entire towns being declared crime scenes. Twenty-four fires are still burning, and authorities warn that the death toll will likely rise. -Bushfires in Victoria, Australia, The Big Picture for the Boston Globe
Australia. It’s far, far, away, and easy to dismiss the bushfires as just another series of wildfires. We deal with them in California all the time. But doing so, ignores the devastation caused by a record breaking heatwave. Over 166 lives have been lost, and fires are still burning. This photo series provides more insight into the true horror of the situation. From melted cars, to families in despair at lost loved ones.
One of the things, I love about the Big Picture is its ability to bring comprehension without words. I warn you while the photos are beautiful, many are also horrifying, and some graphic. I encourage you to look and think about what you can do to help, but take care. Go view Bushfires in Victoria, Australia.
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Permalink: http://www.wide-eyed.org/main/article/bushfires_in_victoria_australia/
Comments
- On 06/09/2009, Danial says:
This was a horrible disaster. I’ve lost one of my friend there.
- On 06/19/2009, Alnisa Allgood says:
Daniel, So Sorry to hear one of your friends died in the bushfires. That was such a horrible and horrifying disaster.
- On 08/25/2009, says:
im so sorry to read about that and to the people that knew him im soo so so so so sorry :( :(;(
- On 10/04/2010, skimboard says:
One of the things, I love about the Big Picture is its ability to bring comprehension without words. I warn you while the photos are beautiful, many are also horrifying, and some graphic.
- On 10/21/2010, Videoclips torrents says:
I’ve read that in some areas of the world that have dry season, natives used to have small controlled fires each year to burn dry bush, thereby preventing the buildup of fuel and preventing huge devastating fires. But now I have read that although Australia has bush fire season each year, that councils do not allow the clearing of dry bush or even cutting dry grass in some cases. They want nature to take care of the build-up of dry bush fuel, because environmentalists claim that for people to remove it is not natural or something. Then some other people said that if that was the case, then it makes a situation where disaster is only a matter of time. . I guess you could say they were warned. Any arsonist, should be charged with murder. But perhaps it is also the fault of bad decisions by councils and environmentaliists.