17 January 2008

Bushfires today in SE Australia

Several bushfires have been noted in SE Australia today, Fires were noted in northern Tasmania, the Adelaide Hills and northeast Victoria.

The largest fire is the Tasmanian blaze. It has been contained as of this evening, after burning near 2500 ha. The weather isn't too bad as far as fire activity goes. Temperatures were near 20, relative humidity was high and winds weren't particularly strong. Fuel loads may be quite high though, allowing for a more intense fire. An Aqua MODIS image of the area from this afternoon is shown below.


A fire also ignited this afternoon in the Adelaide Hills, near Belair. People were evacuated and water bombers were called into to bring the blaze under control. 27 ha were burnt. Weather conditions were not too bad, allowing the fire to be quickly contained.

In northeast VIC, near Corryong, an 80-hectare fire continues to burn out of control in rugged bushland near the Murray River. The weather is hot and dry, but not especially windy. However, the fire is burning in rough terrain, and this may make the winds more erratic and dangerous. No private properties or homes are threatened. A satellite image from the same overpass as above is shown below.

No comments: