Australian authorities are racing to evacuate thousands of people stranded in the states of New South Wales and Victoria, with the military helping people escape the deadly wildfires by sea.
The latest: A naval ship with a 1,000-person capacity docked off the coast of Malacoota, Victoria, is set to evacuate some of the 4,000 people sheltering on the beach from fires, authorities said. The HMAS Choules, which specializes in responding to humanitarian crises, is set to conduct several sea evacuations.
- The NSW Rural Fire Service issued a "tourist leave zone" ahead of the arrival of dangerous conditions Saturday from fires expected to stretch over 150 miles along the South Coast to the state border with Victoria.
- The NSW Police opened a major fire-ravaged highway northbound Wednesday night to enable thousands of tourists who'd been stranded from Milton to Batemans Bay, an area stretching some 35 miles, to leave, per the Daily Telegraph, which reports major power and communications outages in the area caused by the fires.
The state of play: Australia faces a humanitarian crisis from the country's deadly wildfires, with gas, food and water beginning to run out on the New South Wales South Coast, 7News reports.
- Australia's Bureau of Meteorology tweeted there's an elevated fire and heat danger for NSW, Victoria, Western Australia and South Australia.
In Victoria, state Premier Daniel Andrews told a news conference 17 people were missing in the East Gippsland fires.
- The Royal Australian Navy has begun delivering aid to people in Mallacoota after the HMAS Choules docked in the bushfire-ravaged East Gippsland town just before lunchtime Thursday local time.
In Western Australia, a Catastrophic Fire Danger Rating was issued for Thursday for the Goldfields region of the state, an area dominated by mining communities, amid searing heat and windy conditions.
In South Australia, the Country Fire Authority issued an extreme fire danger warning for Kangaroo Island, the Mount Lofty Ranges, Lower South East, and the lower Eyre and Yorke peninsulas. Forecasters expect temperatures in the state to hit 108°F, with gusts of wind exceeding 18 mph Friday.
The big picture: At least nine people have died in wildfires since Christmas Day, per the Guardian. The death toll from the fires now stands at 18 since fires began last November, 7News notes.
- Over 1,000 homes have been destroyed by wildfires and some 150 blazes were still burning in NSW and Victoria, per 7News.
- Australia's wildfires are so intense, smoke from the blazes has traveled over 1,200 miles to blanket parts of New Zealand's South Island.
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Editor's note: This is a developing news story. Please check back for updates.
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January 02, 2020 at 09:30AM
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Australia fires: Race to evacuate thousands before conditions worsen - Axios
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