Thousands told to flee homes in Australia amid bushfire threat

Tens of thousands of residents in Australia have been told to evacuate amid fears that a massive bushfire in the state of Victoria could spread.

SYDNEY, Australia — Tens of thousands of residents in Australia’s southeast were told to evacuate on Wednesday due to an intense heat wave that authorities said could further spread a massive bushfire in the state of Victoria, which faces its worst conditions in four years.

Extreme fire ratings have been issued for large parts of Victoria with the Wimmera region in the west given a catastrophic ranking, the top warning level. Mildura, a rural city of about 56,000, could touch 113 degrees Fahrenheit, the Bureau of Meteorology said.

A potential fire impact zone that covers several rural towns has been identified as officials urged around 30,000 residents there to leave their homes by Wednesday morning.

“Today will be a very challenging day for firefighters,” Jason Heffernan, chief officer at the Victoria Fire Department, told ABC television. “Today is one of those days when communities may need to take immediate action at very short notice.”

Hundreds of firefighters were still battling a massive blaze near the city of Ballarat, 60 miles west of Melbourne. The fire, burning since last Thursday, has already destroyed six homes, killed livestock and burned almost 50,000 acres.

https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/thousands-told-flee-homes-australia-bushfire-threat-rcna140846

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