Tag Archives: Australia

Australia has been through the wringer this year. The disastrous bushfire season has led to a dramatic increase in carbon emissions, crazy conspiracy theories, firefighter deaths, some billions of dollars in damage, and the heartbreaking loss of more than a billion animals. A new report shows how more a hundred …

‘This has been a good firefighting day for us, in terms of protecting our cultural assets and critical infrastructure,’ say authorities Firefighters in Australia have managed to keep uncontrolled blazes from reaching suburban areas of the country’s capital city, Canberra, using airdrops of fire retardant. Authorities said three drops of …

Large swathes of southeast Australia were bracing on Thursday for a days-long heatwave that threatens to stoke bushfires that have been burning for months. As firefighters and residents prepared for the heightened danger, the New South Wales (NSW) state government launched a six-month inquiry to examine both the causes of …

The bodies of three U.S. flying firefighters and the cockpit voice recorder from the water bomber in which they died battling Australia’s unprecedented wildfire crisis were retrieved on Saturday as their grieving families arrived in Sydney, officials said. Ian McBeth of Great Falls, Montana, Paul Clyde Hudson of Buckeye, Arizona, …

Sydney and parts of New South Wales were placed under a “severe” fire alert Wednesday after authorities ordered evacuations for residents in the Australian capital of Canberra. The NSW Rural Fire Service said more than 60 fires are burning across the state, and with temperatures near 100 degrees, Fahrenheit coming …

Parts of Australia’s east coast were hit by severe storms on Saturday, dousing some of the bushfires that have devastated the region for months but causing road closures and flash flooding. Fears of smoke from the fires disrupting the Australian Open tennis receded in Melbourne, where the main tournament was …

Two wildfires merged to form a massive inferno in southeastern Australia and a man suffered serious burns protecting a home, in a night of treacherous conditions during the nation’s unprecedented wildfire crisis, officials said Saturday. Authorities were assessing the damage after firefighters battled flames fanned by strong winds through the …

Tens of thousands of Australians have rallied across the country calling on the conservative government to tackle global warming and cut back on fossil fuels, as deadly climate-fueled bushfires burned out of control. At least 26 people have died, and more than 2,000 homes have been destroyed in the unprecedented …

The catastrophic bushfires continue to scorch large swathes of Australian territory, prompting authorities to issue new warnings and evacuation notices as the number of confirmed fatalities exceed two dozen. Scott Morrison, the Australian prime minister, announced in a news conference on Thursday that 27 people have lost their lives as …

Smoke from raging fires in Australia that killed at least seven people this week reached several cities in New Zealand and turned the sky orange, the New Zealand Herald newspaper reported. New Zealanders are sharing videos and photos of the thick orange smog covering the sun on social media. Residents …

Australian military aircraft and vessels will be deployed to help emergency services in the fire-ravaged states of New South Wales (NSW) and Victoria. Thousands of people fled to beaches in the south-eastern states on Tuesday as emergency-level fires spread. In Mallacoota, Victoria, about 4,000 people sought shelter on the coast. …

Volunteer firefighters in New South Wales will get compensation for loss of earnings after spending time away from jobs to battle bushfires in the state, Australia’s federal government says. The offer of up to A$6,000 ($4,200; £3,200) for privately-employed volunteers follows weeks of wrangling. PM Scott Morrison – who had …

Breathing masks are selling out in Sydney with the city enveloped in the smoke from bushfires sweeping across a large swath of Australia’s east coast, damaging the country’s clean and green reputation. Office workers wearing protective masks, previously a rarity, have become a common sight in recent weeks in downtown …

Strong winds stoked more than 100 fires across Australia’s east coast on Tuesday, blanketing Sydney in hazardous smoke and prompting health warnings for the country’s most populous city. Australia is prone to bushfires in its dry, hot summers, but fierce blazes have been sparked early, in the southern spring, by …

A 5.1 magnitude quake has occurred off L’Esperance Rock in the Pacific Ocean near New Zealand, the US Geological Survey (USGS) reported. The quake happened at 9:21 a.m. GMT, with an epicenter 91 kilometers (56.5 miles) east of L’Esperance Rock at a depth of about 10 kilometers (6 miles), USGS …

New Zealand lawmakers passed a bill on Wednesday that would legalize euthanasia, paving the way for the public to vote on the issue in a referendum next year. The bill, which enables terminally ill people to request a medically assisted death, was passed 69-51 in parliament, after several amendments and …

Thousands of people are in the path of deadly Australian bushfires that have produced clouds of smoke seen as far away as New Zealand. A seven-day state of emergency has been declared in New South Wales, where strong winds, high temperatures, and low humidity have prompted the Rural Fire Service …

The skies of New South Wales are glowing an eerie orange after reignited wildfires swept through parts of the state, killing two people, leveling scores of homes and destroying much of the local koala habitat. The revived brush fires – which have burned intermittently across eastern Australia for months– picked …

US President Donald Trump told reporters on Friday that he has ordered sanctions on Iran’s national bank following the attacks on Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities. The announcement was made in the Oval Office, where he and Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison were scheduled to hold a bilateral meeting. Trump did …

Hundreds of thousands of students, office workers, and other protesters took to the streets around the world on Friday to demand global leaders gathering for a U.N. climate summit take urgent action to avert an environmental catastrophe. The global climate strike kicked off in the Pacific islands – some of …