MELBOURNE, Australia — With terrifying memories of Australia’s deadliest wildfires still fresh in their minds, residents chose to flee rather than stay and protect their homes today when new blazes broke containment lines and threatened the forested fringes of the country’s second-largest city.
Many of the victims of the Feb. 7 disaster that officials have labeled “Black Saturday” died in their cars or in the open, and police said they were caught by the flames as they tried — too late — to escape. Since then, officials have stressed that residents of fire-prone areas must pick one of two options and stick with it: leave early when the blaze is near, or stay and fight.
Just one house was destroyed in the Melbourne suburb of Belgrave South before the fire threat eased today, but the panic served as a reminder of how jittery Australians remained 16 days after the disaster that killed more than 200 people.
At least two new fires broke out today in southern Victoria state where temperatures soared into the mid-80s Fahrenheit and strong gusty winds changed directions, blowing the fires first one way then another.
Meanwhile, another fire that had been burning for more than a week flared and sent wind-carried embers raining down in populated areas of Melbourne, the state capital.
Two of the more than 100 firefighters who fought the blaze in Belgrave South suffered minor injuries, said Kevin Monk, a state environment department spokesman. Today’s fire burned almost 5,000 acres of land, the Country Fire Authority said.
The fire authority downgraded the threat from the fire in Belgrave South tonight, and said threats from fires burning near Daylesford, northwest of Melbourne, and Warburton to the east also eased as the evening brought cooler temperatures and the wind dropped.
Authorities had warned at the weekend of the possibility of more fires. Many residents said the carnage of the Feb. 7 fires made the decision to flee or stay an easy one.
“I’m no hero — take the house,” one unnamed woman told the Australian Broadcasting Corp. television as she prepared to leave Warburton.
Relief centers in nearby towns filled with people who had loaded their cars with photos, clothes and other personal belongings and left their houses to wait out the emergency.
Dawn Brown and her husband Ray left their home in Yarra Junction today with some family heirlooms and their wedding video. She said the disaster two weeks ago influenced their decision to leave in plenty of time.
“I would’ve liked to stay a bit longer but Ray said, ‘No, we’re going and we’re going now,”’ Dawn Brown told ABC.
Hundreds of fires swept a vast area of Victoria on Feb. 7 when record temperatures of around 117 F and 60-mph winds and forests dried by years of drought combined into infernos that destroyed more than 1,800 homes and displaced more than 7,000 people.
The confirmed death toll stood at 209 today and was expected to rise as more remains were identified from the ruins.
Queen Elizabeth II’s daughter Princess Anne toured the disaster zone today, a day after attending ceremonies to mark a national day of mourning for the victims. She met emergency workers and schoolchildren in the town of Wandong, about 30 miles north of Melbourne.
Some sites remained sealed off by police as they searched for bodies and evidence of arson. One man has been charged with starting one of the deadly fires, and arson is suspected in at least one other.
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and Victoria Premier John Brumby announced today that the two governments would pay cleanup costs of up to $16,000 each for people affected by the fires.
“The cleanup task is absolutely crucial to getting on with the task of rebuilding,” Brumby told reporters in Melbourne. He declined to give a total cost for the plan.
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
