Dramatic satellite images have captured the horrifying scale of Australia’s bushfire crisis as swathes of country are engulfed by smoke and flames or else left a charred ruin.
Images taken by European weather satellites on New Year’s Eve show blazes raging around Batemans Bay and Milton, on the New South Wales coast, and a huge area of burned bushland to the west of Sydney.
It comes as the fire death toll was raised to 17 – with eight dead in the last week alone including a newlywed firefighter who was crushed when a fire tornado flipped his 10-tonne water truck over.
Samuel McPaul, 28, was killed on Monday when he was battling a blaze in Jingellic, on the border between New South Wales and Victoria states, when freak winds created by the blazes overturned the vehicle he was in.
He leaves behind pregnant wife Megan, who he married just 18 months before the accident, and who has praised the firefighters who were with her husband the day he died.
Australia is experiencing its worst fire season in recent memory, as blazes sparked by lightning and fanned by freak winds tear through vegetation left tinder-dry by years of drought.
A satellite image taken above Batemans Bay in New South Wales on New Year’s Eve shows the ferocity of fires that are ripping through bushland across Australia, leaving at least 17 dead
An image of the Clyde Mountain Fire, currently burning near the city of Milton on the New South Wales coast, shows the extent of the devastation with a huge swathe of the country burned black
Another area of bushland smoulders to the west of Sydney as firefighters struggle to contain hundreds of blazes burning across Australia in the country’s worst fire season in recent memory
Samuel McPaul, 28, a firefighter from New South Wales, was killed on Monday when freak flipped over the 10-tonne water truck he was riding in. He leaves behind pregnant wife Megan (together left and right), who he married just 18 months ago
Hundreds of fires across five Australian states have burned an area larger than the Netherlands, killed at least 17 people, destroyed entire towns and stretched the fire service to its limit
Hundreds of blazes across five states have scorched an area larger than the size of the Netherlands, destroyed entire towns and pushed the Australian fire service to its limit.
Emergency services warned on Wednesday that conditions could be about to get worse, urging people to evacuate affected areas as soon as possible to ensure their safety.
It comes after some 4,000 tourists and locals got trapped on a beach in Victoria state, near the border with New South Wales, after ignoring an earlier evacuation order.
Rural Fire Service Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons warned: ‘We are getting indications with the forecast for Saturday that it is going to present a broader geographic area worse than what we saw yesterday.
‘We all need to prepare ourselves for more challenging conditions.’
He said the areas the fires would dominate a vast area from the south eastern corner of NSW up to Illawara and Shoalhaven.
Police said they will reopen roads to Bateman’s Bay on Wednesday as fire conditions improved. Some roads to the rest of the south coast are expected to reopen allowing tourists to get out of the area and return home.
Earlier on Wednesday eerie satellite images captured taken 760kms away captured the extent of Australia’s bushfire disaster.
The confronting satellite images were captured from the SENTINEL-2 satellites which orbit the earth at an altitude of 786 km.
Mick Roberts, 67, was found dead in his fire damage residence in Buchan on Wednesday morning
One image of the Clyde Mountain fire, 200km south of Sydney, showed the extent of the damage spanning hundreds of kilometres, giving a perspective to the massive challenge faced by mainly volunteer firefighters.
Though conditions moderated on Wednesday, giving the firefighters a chance to contain and douse some fires, hot and windy conditions were forecast to return on Saturday.
Another image showed the devastation of the fires at the coastal town of Batemans Bay early Wednesday morning as the blaze continues to spread.
NSW Police confirmed a total of seven people have been killed and two are unaccounted for in the South Coast bushfires since Monday.
The deaths include dairy farmer Patrick Salway, 29, and his father Robert, 63, who died trying to save their property in Cobargo, near Bega.
Young father and volunteer firefighter Samuel McPaul, 28, was also among those confirmed dead after he was killed by a fire tornado.
A 70-year-old man was found dead outside a home at Yatte Yattah, west of Lake Conjola, on Tuesday night, while another man’s body was found in a burnt vehicle on a road off the Princes Highway at Yatte Yattah Wednesday morning.
The body of a man was found in a vehicle on Wandra Road at Sussex Inlet about 11.30am Wednesday but is yet to be formally identified, while a seventh body was found outside a home Coolagolite, about 10km east of Cobargo, on Wednesday.
Beloved great-grandfather Mick Roberts, 67, from Buchan, in East Gippsland, as found dead at his home on Wednesday morning.
A kangaroo can be seen moving away from nearby bushfires at a residential property near Nowra on the NSW South Coast
Firefighters are seen struggling against the strong winds which are blowing embers on them in an effort to secure houses near bushfires on Tuesday
Meanwhile, a 72-year-old man is unaccounted for at Belowra, 50km north-west of Cobargo.
A 70-year-old woman who was missing from Conjola Park was found alive on Wednesday.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian and RFS Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons were in Batemans Bay experiencing the devastation firsthand.
‘It’s very difficult to console people when they’ve lost everything. We need to make sure they’re supported,’ Ms Berejiklian said.
‘It’s very difficult for those that have lost everything and people are going through various stages of grief and loss. And all we can do is support them in every which way we’ll do.’
Some communities have seen up to 80 per cent of their homes and businesses destroyed.
Commissioner Fitzsimmons said the death toll is expected to climb as the RFS analyse the extent of the damage on the South Coast.
‘So we know that the damage that’s been occasioned right throughout the south-east corner of New South Wales is a heavy toll. And more importantly we’re seeing unfortunately the tragedy of lives lost as well,’ he said on Wednesday afternoon.
‘As the Premier quite rightly indicated, we need to prepare ourselves for that number to climb with information coming out this afternoon.’
Business owner Sally Anne Wilson (left) stands in front of her destroyed shop with her partner Christopher Lee in Cobargo, NSW, Wednesday, January 1, 2020
A firefighter hosing down trees and flying embers in an effort to secure nearby houses in Nowra on Tuesday
Smoke and flames are seen rising from burning trees as bushfires hit the bushland surrounding the small town of Nowra
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian and RFS Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons are in Batemans Bay (pictured) experiencing the devastation firsthand
Commissioner Fitzsimmons said the death toll is expected to climb as the RFS analyse the extent of the damage on the South Coast
Andrew Constance, the Minister for Transport and Roads and Liberal member for Bega, was also in Batemans Bay and described Tuesday as being a ‘bugger of a day’.
‘Yesterday morning the fire moved at a pace that no-one expected. It shot around the back of places and hit Mogo pretty hard and burnt through to the beach,’ Mr Constance said.
‘It’s devastating. But we’ll pull together. A great community.’
Damage has also been wrought in the Snowy Mountains and towards Tumbarumba, as well as on the NSW Central Coast.
Some of the worst-affected communities along the coast battled bushfires into Tuesday night with no power and limited telecommunications.
At least 50,000 homes are currently without power on the South Coast.
‘The damage to the electricity network from these latest fires is significant and widespread, with at least 40 poles being destroyed in the past 24 hours,’ Endeavour South Coast regional manager Janine Cullen said.
Many spent New Year’s Eve without power as energy companies worked through the night to have it restored.
Ulladulla, south of Conjola Park, saw the power turn back on early Wednesday after fires tore through the area on Tuesday.
As of 4pm on Wednesday, 102 fires were burning statewide with 40 uncontrolled. Seven blazes were at watch-and-act level while no emergency warnings were current.
Dangerous bushfire conditions will return on Saturday, with 40C temperatures and gusty winds set to create worse conditions than this week’s blazes.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian today told reporters the forecast is grim.
‘We are assuming that on Saturday weather conditions will be at least as bad as what they were yesterday,’ she said.
Temperatures will hit 45C in some part of the country as horror conditions are expected for Saturday
The town of Cobargo, where Mr Salway and his son died on Monday bravely battling to defend their homes, has been leveled
Residents of Cobargo, NSW, inspect the damage the fire left after it ripped through the town on Tuesday
Then: Cobargo as it was before bushfires sparked by the worst conditions Australia has had in living memory ripped through the town
‘That is something all of us have to brace ourselves for.’
Bureau of Meteorology forecaster Agata Imielska explained to Daily Mail Australia how conditions will be similar to Tuesday – with extremely hot temperatures followed by powerful gusts.
‘Yesterday temperatures peaked before a southerly came through,’ she said. ‘Saturday will be the next big day to look out for.’
The mercury will start to rise on Friday when ‘large areas’ of the state will have temperatures of more than 40C and these hot conditions will intensify on Saturday.
A southerly was expected to come through during the late afternoon and the strong winds expected will pose issues for firefighters.
‘The dry and strong winds will make the blazes burning across the state flare and drive them in a new direction,’ the forecaster said.
She said the winds will also cause embers to fly further, sparking fresh outbreaks.
Despite the cooler conditions on Wednesday, parts of the state – including the north west of the Great Dividing Range – remained ‘quite warm’.
Hazardous smoke conditions were also expected following the southerly change.
Victoria was set to experience similar conditions to New South Wales on Saturday.
Temperatures are set to rise before gusty winds will develop in the western part of the state around dawn before hitting the east in the afternoon.
The change is set to bring some isolated showers and thunderstorms.
The eastern part of the state will be covered in a smoke haze from the East Gippsland fires which menaced the town of Mallacoota on Tuesday.
A horse escaped from the nearby bushfires at a residential property near Nowra as bushfires ravage the area on Tuesday
Now: Devastation in Cobargo. Authorities have confirmed more than 200 properties were destroyed in yesterday’s NSW blazes
Three people are confirmed dead and there are concerns for five people who are missing after fires left scenes like the one in Cobargo across the state
Three thousand firefighters were deployed to help battle the blazes and protect homes, businesses and vehicles
Cobargo has been destroyed by fires on Tuesday after blazes ripped through the town and burned several buildings
Hope was fading for four people who have not been heard from in 24 hours in the Gippsland region.
There were 46 fires still burning and 43 properties destroyed in the popular holiday destination.
After a day sheltering on the beach on Tuesday, tourists and locals in Mallacoota spent the night sleeping in a local cinema.
Many spent New Year’s Eve on the town’s jetty and were told to be ready to get in the water at a moment’s notice to keep safe.
Those in the NSW holiday towns of Bateman’s Bay and Bermagui also fled to evacuation centres or the beaches on Tuesday.
Batemans Bay had been ‘absolutely destroyed,’ according to local Federal MP for Gilmore Fiona Phillips.
‘It’s just been absolute devastation. The building loss we believe around the Batemans Bay area and Mogo is in the hundreds. It’s very, very significant,’ she said, according to the ABC.
‘The industrial area at Batemans Bay has certainly suffered significant damage and the Mogo CBD is unrecognisable.’
Ms Phillips said hundreds of buildings have been destroyed in the area.
Federal MP for Eden Monaro Mike Kelly said at least 200 homes have been lost on the Far South Coast.
The situation was made more difficult by mobile phone outages throughout the affected areas, meaning families and friends have been unable to reach their loved ones.
In the wake of devastating infernos which claimed the lives of as many as eight people on the NSW south coast and Victoria’s East Gippsland region, authorities have warned it’s only going to get worse at the weekend
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian today told reporters the forecast is grim
The fires in Cobargo not only destroyed homes and buildings but two men lost their lives
Cobargo wasn’t the only town destroyed – Batemans Bay was also devastated, according to local Federal MP
Patrick Salway, 29, (pictured with his pregnant wife Renee) died fighting the fires with his father Robert Salway
Bereaved widow Renee Salway took to social media on Tuesday (pictured) and said she is ‘broken’. ‘I love you now, I love you still, I always have and I always will,’ she wrote
Fires have been burning in Australia – such as this one near Tahmoor known as the Green Wattle Creek Fire on December 19 – since September
‘No communication is a rarity in today’s world so it’s an uncomfortable feeling,’ Melbourne man Nic Baxter told AAP on Tuesday evening, as he waited to hear from his father in Batemans Bay.
Military aircraft and vessels came to the assistance of emergency services on Wednesday in New South Wales and Victoria, evacuating people from danger zones.
Army Blackhawk and Chinook helicopters were deployed to rescue thousands stranded on a beach in the fire-ravaged area.
The United States and Canada were understood to have been asked to provide ‘specialist aviation resources’ to help Australia’s emergency efforts.
Waterbombing aircraft helped efforts to stop a 250ha blaze reaching residential homes at Blue Haven on the Central Coast.
Major roads, including several parts of the Princes Highway linking south coast communities, were likely to remain closed for some time due to hazards.
Conditions are expected to get worse on Saturday with smoke filling the air. Pictured: Wattle Creek Fire on December 19
A home lost to a bushfire on Hassall Road in Buxton as the Green Wattle Creek Fire on December 19
One hundred fires are blazing across New South Wales as of Wednesday morning