Fires continue to tragically ravage NSW today, with the fires that formed a cloud of smoke tingeing Sydney skies a threatening shade of orange on Thursday afternoon proving to be unrelenting.
In what appears to be one of the most significant bush fire tragedies in NSW since the early 2000s, the Rural Fire Service have today confirmed that 193 properties, at the time of writing, have been destroyed in Springwood and Winmalee; 109 properties have been damaged. This number is expected to mount over the weekend as 83 fires continue to burn across the state with 19 of those blazes classified as “uncontained” according to The Gaurdian.
As the Blue Mountains area in NSW prepares for dangerous conditions after an emergency warning was issued to the residents this afternoon, news of the same fire crippling the Blue Mountains’ iconic Zig Zag Railway brings a significant blow to the community as SMH estimates the damage will run into “the millions of dollars” and may take more than a year of repairs.
The NSW bushfires have also calimed their first casualty as Lake Munmorah resident Walter Linder died protecting his property from flames.
The smoky conditions still prevalent in NSW has prompted the Asthma Foundation NSW to issue a health warning to asthma sufferers, especially children, in the state.
More on the NSW bushfires as information becomes available.
Residents have been urged to pay close attention to the RFS’ map of bushfires here (google’s mirrored version also available here), listen to ABC local radio if in danger or call 1800 NSW RFS. Social media has been playing a key role in the fires with the #nswfires hashtag providing up to date information on twitter and facebook.
Title image by Cassie Trotter via Getty.
