Climate change relayed to Australia's sea of ​​fire

Earth warming helps wildfires in southern Australia spread at breakneck speed, turning into a historic fire storm that killed more than 100 people.

The firewall in Bunyip National Forest is about 125 km west of Melbourne.Photo: AP.

The worst heatwave in a century in Australia caused temperatures in some parts of the southeast to rise to 46 degrees Celsius, before the flames appeared and burned at least 131 people in Victoria. . Meanwhile, the north is experiencing flooding.

The devastating extent of the fire storm shocked many Australians, although they had quite a bit of experience dealing with wildfires. The Australian Meteorological and Hydrological Authority said that hot dry air and trees containing essential oils (eucalyptus, pine) have made forest fires an integral part of the country's history.

Major fires in the past proved this, such as the "Ash Wednesday" event in 1983 that killed 75 people because of fire one day. There were 71 people also burned to death in the "Dark Friday" in 1939 and several dozen other fires during the white period began to explore Australia.

But the sea of ​​fire in Victoria began on February 7 last year with the most destructive power in Australian history and many experts believe that fire has tremendous strength thanks to climate change. "Climate change, weather and drought are changing the nature, extent of danger and the duration of forest fires ," said Gary Morgan, director of the Australian Forest Fire Research Center.

A firefighter looks at the helicopter throwing water bombs at the forest fire.Photo: AP.

Mark Adams, a fire specialist at the University of Sydney, says that climate conditions in Australia are becoming increasingly unpredictable. "Severe weather conditions like February 7 have never happened in the past. We do not have enough evidence to explain the February 7 extreme weather conditions in terms of climate change. But all scientific research so far confirms that the weather will continue to be tougher in the coming years , 'Mark commented.

A study by the Australian Meteorological Agency and the government-run CSIRO found that the number of days with severe weather conditions like February 7 could double by 2050 if climate change Currently not reversed. Greenpeace affirmed that disasters like a fire in Victoria will be more common in the future if the pace of climate change does not decrease.

'As climate change continues to happen, Australia faces a scenario in which droughts, heat, wildfires, floods and tornadoes occur more frequently. The brutality of Victoria's tragedy is a warning bell for politicians to understand the urgency of climate change ' , said John Hepburn, one of Greenpeace's leaders.

David Packham of Monash University (Australia) affirmed that officials do not know how to manage forests, so they accidentally let the forest become a source of essential oils for the flames. He said that for a few thousand years, Aboriginal people in kangaroos used a burning method in the forest to prevent fire from spreading when there was a fire. David advised the authorities to apply aboriginal measures.