In a 21 October post I wrote about the bushfires in Australia. The American news media no longer covers the wildfires. But thanks to the internet I was able to get an update on the firefighters' containment efforts. (Yes, I referred to them as wild fires in my previous post. The proper Aussie term is "bushfires".)
As of 2 November (that would be 3 November on this side of the international date line), 43 bushfires continue to burn along the eastern seaboard across the state of New South Wales, 15 of them remained uncontrolled. About ten days ago, there were more than 70 bushfires, most of them uncontrolled. Many of the remaining fires are in the Blue Mountains a few miles northwest of Sydney.
Firefighters continue working to contain the blazes and have implemented a total fire ban in the affected area. Low humidity and high temperatures in many areas aren't helping the containment efforts.
For the immediate Sydney area, the major concern now is the air quality index. As of Saturday, the AQI is 15 times normal levels and is considered to be hazardous. The city is blanketed with a smoky haze that is worse in the early mornings greatly increasing the number of false alarms from home smoke detectors. According the a spokesman for the NSW Rural Fire Service, the AQI is worsened by the ongoing bushfires as well as the back burning intended to contain the blazes.
Like Americans living in the western part of the US, Aussies experience bushfires every year. They're a tough lot. Even though some have lost their homes and possibly all of their possessions, they'll be okay. I look forward to meeting some of them.
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