NASA Satellite image of Australian Bushfires 4th, Jan, 2020.
Here in India, I used to hear about local wildfires in Southern states of India, every now and then, but no serious damage was done, anytime. For the first time, I was truly taken aback seeing the images and videos of Australian Bushfires 2019-20. And so was the Whole World too.
For the first time The Whole World’s Attention was drawn towards these ghastly fires. Here is the damage done by Australian Bushfires:
Carbon Emissions: A September 2021 study using satellite data estimated the CO2 emissions of the fires from November 2019 to January 2020 to be ~715 million tons surpassing Australia’s normal annual bushfire and fossil fuel emissions by around 80%, which is 535 million tons.
Economic Damages estimated to be: USD 69-159 Billion.
Structures destroyed : 3400+ Homes. [NSW – 2,448, Victoria – 396, South Australia – 151, Queensland – 48 and more]. And 5,852 Outbuildings. So, total Structures destroyed = 9,352.
Deaths: Direct deaths – 34 [NSW – 26, Victoria – 5, South Australia – 3] Indirect Deaths by smoke Inhalation – 445.
Also, an air tanker and two helicopters crashed during operations, killing three crew members. Two fire trucks were caught in fatal accidents, killing three firefighters.
Area Burnt = 46.3 million Acres.
Wildlife Destruction: A 2020 study estimated that at least 3 billion terrestrial vertebrates alone were displaced or killed by the fires, with reptiles (which tend to have higher population densities in affected areas compared to other vertebrates) comprising over two-thirds of the affected, with birds, mammals, and amphibians comprising the other third. The loss of an estimated 8,000 koalas caused concerns.
This was the first wildfire that caught my attention and stirred something in me. For the first time, I started to think deeply about them and what could be contributed from me to help address this growing crisis.
Satellite image of bushfire smoke Nov2019.
7Dec,2019- NASA Satellite image of bushfire smoke.
Destroyed house in Hillville, NSW, Australia, 12Nov2019.
Destroyed house and machinery shed on a farm in Hillville, NSW on 14Nov2019.
Firefighters trying to save burning home due to out-of-control bushfire in South West Sydney, 2019.
George Street in Sydney blanketed with smoke in Dec,2019.
Smoke Plume as viewed from International Space Station 4Jan2020.
2019-20 NSW Bushfire State memorial held in Sydney Olympic Park.
Protests in Brisbane in response to Bushfires.
Poster from 1958 NSW Bushfire Committee (NSW-New South Wales, Australia)
