At least 200 families across two states could be homeless this Christmas after a horror weekend of catastrophic bushfires wiped out entire towns, amid warnings the worst is yet to come.
At least 100 buildings are feared to have been destroyed across New South Wales on Saturday, mostly in the Southern Highlands and Blue Mountains.
Bushfires also took a heavy toll on South Australia, where at least 72 homes, 404 outbuildings and 227 vehicles were gutted in the Adelaide Hills, in what Premier Steven Marshall described as a ‘devastating’ 48 hours for the state.
Almost 200 bushfires continue to burn across Australia.
The fires claimed the life of Adelaide Hills resident Ron Selth, just days after NSW Rural Fire Service volunteers Geoff Keaton and Andrew O’Dwyer were killed when a tree fell on their truck while fighting the Green Wattle Creek in the Southern Highlands on Thursday night.
The NSW bushfire crisis is far from over with fears more homes could be lost after the Grose Valley fire in the Blue Mountains west of Sydney flared up to emergency levels for the second time within 24 hours.
The 460,000ha Gospers Mountains megablaze spread to communities, including Bilpin
More than 72 homes have been lost in the Adelaide Hills, including this one in Woodside
Dozens of homes are feared lost in the Blue Mountains after the blaze tore through on Saturday night, fuelled by intense weather conditions. Pictured: Tutti Fruitti Fruit Shop
‘Fire activity is increasing in the area of Govetts Leap Road at Blackheath. Residents south of Govetts Leap Road should seek shelter as fire approaches. Protect yourself from the heat of the fire,’ the NSW Rural Fire Service tweeted early Monday morning.
The threat to homes had eased by 2am.
NSW RFS Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons warned more fires may flare up later in the week with Sydney forecast to soar past temperatures in the mid 30s next Saturday.
Mr Fitzsimmons said firefighters would take advantage of better conditions this week, which should include temperatures in the mid-20s, higher humidity and easterly winds.
The biggest focus will be on preparing vulnerable Blue Mountains communities ahead of hotter and more challenging conditions returning next weekend.
‘With the easing weather conditions today, crews are working hard to strengthen containment lines,’ the RFS said in a statement on Sunday.
‘Planning is underway for large scale back burns today in the Blue Mountains to contain the Grose Valley Fire.’
Homes destroyed so far this bushfire season is nearing 1,000 with 789 homes in NSW alone.
As of 11pm on Sunday night, almost half of the 98 bush and grass fires burning in NSW were out of control.
Favourable conditions on Sunday allowed fire authorities to assess the damage in fire-ravaged regions and focus on containment options.
Before and after photos of Govetts Leap Lookout, Blackheath
A firefighter watches on in the NSW town of Bargo
While the total number of homes lost is yet to be confirmed, the towns of Balmoral in the Southern Highlands and Dargan north of the Blue Mountains have been all but wiped out.
Up to 17 houses were lost in Dargan, a town which has a population of less than 100.
Clarence/Dargan Bushfire Brigade deputy captain Kevin McCusker, 65, estimated that about half of the brigade had lost their homes.
He also lost stock and infrastructure for his nursery business.
‘The firefront just came through as a tornado. We tried to save as many homes as we could, but it was just a wall of flames coming towards you,’ he told The Australian.
It’s understood at least another eight homes were lost in nearby Lithgow.
Devastating new photographs show Saturday night’s carnage as a mega-blaze covering 460,000 hectares spread from Gospers Mountain through to the Blue Mountains, destroying an estimated 20 homes (the Tutti Fruitti shop in Gospers Mountain destroyed by fire)
The town of Woodside in the Adelaide Hills felt the brunt of bushfires. Pictured is what’s left of a burnt car and boat
Justin said the fire in Balmoral was so fierce that they were unable to save their home (pictured is the gutted remains)
Premier Gladys Berejiklian says ‘there’s not much left’ in the small town of Balmoral, southwest of Sydney.
The tight-knit community was already reeling after being hit on Thursday when the flames returned on Saturday during catastrophic fire conditions as flames up to 40m high.
The number of homes lost in Balmoral on Saturday is yet to be confirmed but is at least a dozen.
One family who stayed behind to defend their property recalled as they helplessly watched their house and possessions burn to the ground.
‘We got hit from the east and west at the same time- that’s what made the the property indefensible at that point,’ Balmoral resident Justin told Seven News.
‘We had no chance against that.’
He told Nine News: ‘There is nothing to come back to.’
Balmoral, in the Wingecarribee Shire Council area, consists of about 150 houses with a population of some 400 people.
Smoke from the New South Wales bushfires reached Brisbane (pictured) on Sunday
Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons described the extent of property damage from the weekend’s blazes is ‘significant’.
‘We could be talking about another 100 buildings being added to the state tally so far this season,’ he told reporters on Sunday.
‘We are expecting another heavy toll unfortunately with estimates that property loss could be in the dozens of buildings including homes, outbuildings, sheds and businesses,’ Mr Fitzsimmons said.
The Currawong blaze north of Batemans Bay also raced through communities near Nerriga on Saturday, Mr Fitzsimmons said.
More than 70 homes were lost in the South Australian bushfire on Saturday. Pictured is what’s left of Woodside property
The South Australian bushfires have not only claimed homes and lives but also livestock (pictured in Woodside near Adelaide)
One elderly man unaccounted for in the Dargan area east of Lithgow was located on Sunday morning ‘safe and sound’ at an evacuation centre.
Mr Fitzsimmons said firefighters would take advantage of better conditions this week, which should include temperatures in the mid-20s, higher humidity and easterly winds.
The biggest focus will be on preparing vulnerable Blue Mountains communities ahead of hotter and more challenging conditions returning next weekend.
The Greater Sydney basin didn’t reach the forecast catastrophic conditions on Saturday because heavy bushfire smoke acted as insulation to reduce temperatures.
The heavy smoke – which has been causing hazardous air pollution for months – also mitigated the strengthening winds.
‘It was a blessing in terms of preventing the catastrophic conditions reaching their forecast level in the Greater Sydney area,’ Mr Fitzsimmons said.
Firefighters suffered from heat exhaustion on Saturday, with one crew in the Dargan area overcome by chlorine fumes after a building containing the chemical caught alight.
Firefighters are hoping a week of cooler conditions forecast will help them get on top of the fires (firefighters battle a blaze on a property near Gospers Mountain)
A number of firefighters were taken to hospital for treatment.
Mr Fitzsimmons warned the worse was still to come this summer, with ‘far more risk and exposure as we head through the hotter months’.
‘We’re not expecting any meaningful rain to start bringing a meaningful easing of conditions on these fire grounds until late January or early February,’ he said.
In South Australia, extreme fire conditions across the state will continue on Monday with a severe warning and total fire ban for the Mount Lofty Ranges.
More than 25,000 hectares have been burnt within a 127-kilometre perimeter.
‘There’s still lots of pockets of bush burning, there’s lots of trees that are hot and smouldering and it’s a very dangerous place to be,’ SA Fire and Rescue Deputy Chief Andrew Stark said.
Horrific footage from the Blue Mountains shows a wall of fire down a mountain face as wild fires continue to ravage NSW
Balmoral in the NSW Southern Highlands was ‘all but wiped out’ by the Green Wattle Creek firestorm on Saturday
Fires continued to burn out of control in the Adelaide Hills early Monday morning.
Areas affected include Cudlee Creek, Gumeracha, Lobethal, Woodside, Mount Torrens, Chain of Ponds, Inglewood, Castambul, Paracombe, Millbrook and Montacute in the Mount Lofty Ranges
‘Take action now as this bushfire may threaten your safety. If you are not prepared, leave now and if the path is clear, go to a safer place. Do not enter this area as conditions are dangerous,’ the Country Fire Service posted on Facebook.
Livestock and several vineyards have been lost in the devastating blazes in the Adelaide Hills.
Tilbrook Estates, run by James Tilbrook and his wife Annabelle was wiped out, including most of their stock.
‘Just one charred (empty) barrel left. All the bottled wine has exploded. The heat was that intense it melted empty bottles. All the equipment is fire damaged/ stuffed,’ Mr Tilbrook posted on Facebook.
‘At the moment still trying to process it all. Our biggest problem is that we have lost our livelihood.’
His friend Jason Wright has set a GoFundMe page to help the Tilbrooks rebuild.
‘With a multi-million dollar mortgage, they have no way to generate income to pay their bills while their winery is re-built,’ the page states.
‘And re-build? Sure they can re-plant, but James’s oldest grapes clones date back to his first planting in 1999. This is irreplaceable. They have lost 90% of their vines and all 45 acres of their farm is destroyed.
Almost half of the 98 bush and grass fires burning in NSW on Sunday night were still yet to be contained.
‘The probability is that the small amount of vines left will probably be smoke tainted and therefore it may be 2-3 years before his vineyard can be income generating again.’
Meanwhile, two bushfires in the southwest and and southeast parts of Victoria remain under ‘watch and act’ warnings, the state gets ready to face smoky conditions on Monday.
Mild conditions during the weekend helped firefighters strengthen containment lines, but two blazes were still burning uncontrolled in Tambo Crossing and Hotspur, Digby.
Temperatures dipped on Sunday with about 24C in East Gippsland, and a milder 22C in Melbourne, after a top of 44C in the Victorian capital on Friday.
Adelaide Hills bushfires destroy more than 70 homes and leave man, 69, dead
More than 70 homes have been destroyed in South Australia’s devastating bushfires that claimed the life of a 69-year-old engineer.
Ron Selth, who died in the Cudlee Creek bushfire in the Adelaide Hills over the weekend, has been remembered by his family and friends as a doting and generous man.
‘He will be remembered for his incredible – sometimes injury-causing – hugs and will be deeply missed by his family and his many friends,’ Mr Selth’s family said in a statement.
‘Some people give firm hugs – I don’t know what’s beyond firm, but that’s what Dad occasionally delivered. When he gave a hug, he meant it.’
The grandfather’s body was found on his Charleston property after the bushfires swept through last Friday.
Ron Selth (pictured), 69, who died in the Cudlee Creek bushfire in the Adelaide Hills over the weekend, is being remembered as a doting and generous man
Mr Selth’s body was found on his Charleston property after the deadly bushfires swept through last Friday
‘Ron was a loving, optimistic and generous man, who valued his relationships with family and friends more than anything else,’ the family told The Advertiser.
‘He built a highly successful engineering business that contributed to the design of thousands of buildings in SA, mainly in the Adelaide Hills, and is often described as having a unique and unforgettable character.’
Neighbour Michael McFarlane told 9News Mr Selth was a ‘nice bloke’.
‘I didn’t know the gentleman was up there. Now, if I had have known, I would have jumped in this machine behind me, went and picked him up and brought him back here as the fire was getting closer,’ he added.
Mr Selth left behind his partner Suzy, his children Luke, Jasmine and Johanna, and his six grandchildren.
A number of other people remain injured, and 3000 properties in the Adelaide Hills remain without power.
The number of homes destroyed in the Cudlee Creek bushfire has risen to 72, as well as 404 ‘outbuildings’ on properties and 227 vehicles.
South Australian Premier Steven Marshall said there were ‘scenes of absolute devastation’ as residents returned to their homes that had been reduced to rubble.
Emergency crews have also suffered injuries with 23 firefighters injured, one seriously, and two police officers needing treatment.
The number of homes destroyed in the Cudlee Creek bushfire has risen to 72, as well as 404 ‘outbuildings’ on properties and 227 vehicles
Building destroyed by a fire in Lobethal in the Adelaide Hills, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
Meanwhile, smoke from the Adelaide Hills bushfire had dropped the city’s air quality rating to poor.
The Environment Protection Authority says air quality readings are improving but parts of the hills and metropolitan area remain affected by bushfire smoke.
The situation on Sunday was further exacerbated by an early morning temperature inversion layer which kept smoke low to the ground.
The EPA said anyone with health issues or concerns should stay inside with windows and doors closed.
A watch and act warning remains in place for the blaze, with the Country Fire Service reporting some renewed fire activity within the 127-kilometre perimeter.
The fire has burnt through more than 25,000 hectares and destroyed at least 15 homes.
Before it was sparked on Friday, the Bureau of Meteorology also reported that smoke from the NSW bushfires had made its way to Adelaide.
The massive Cudlee Creek fire in the Adelaide Hills has ravaged 25,000 hectares of country.
Another fatality was also reported at Lameroo when a car hit a tree sparking a grass fire.
‘There has been devastation right across the Adelaide Hills and the extent of that is yet to be seen,’ he said.
‘Many people in the affected areas haven’t had the opportunity to go back and assess the damage and I think there will be some pretty devastating scenes ahead of Christmas.’
‘We know in addition to those losses there are very significant losses of livestock, animals, crops and vineyards.
‘It’s going to be a scene of devastation, especially for those people in the Adelaide Hills who’ve been most affected.’
The cause of the Cudlee Creek fire is still being investigated but is believed to have been caused by a branch falling on a powerline.
A Woodside resident battles a fire as it crosses Ridge Road at Woodside in the Adelaide Hills in Adelaide, South Australia