Australian authorities say a fourth person has died in a week of massive bushfires on the nation’s east coast.
The 58-year-old man’s body was found in northern New South Wales (NSW) on Thursday, days after a fire ripped through the region.
While, police allege a teenager started a central Queensland bushfire that has destroyed 14 homes,.
Police said the 16-year-old boy has not been charged with arson, but will be dealt with under the state’s Youth Justice Act. The Cobraball fire, near Yeppoon, is still burning days after it destroyed homes, sheds and cars.
Crews are still battling over 120 fires in NSW and Queensland, but locals in Western Australia have now been warned of extremely dangerous conditions.
Fire chiefs have warned the worst of the summer is “still ahead of us”, after expressing alarm at the scale and severity of the spring bushfires.
Residents of two Queensland towns were told to leave immediately as bushfires in the areas worsened, while NSW authorities warned fire conditions could deteriorate as the weekend approached.
On Thursday, a coalition of former fire chiefs accused the government of ignoring their warnings about climate change and its potential to exacerbate fire emergencies.
“Things aren’t going to get better if our elected leaders don’t face this issue head on, and deliver the emissions reductions we need,” said Mike Brown, a former chief fire officer.
The alerts were issued for Black Snake, near Gympie, and Woodgate, south of Bundaberg, early on Thursday.
Fire conditions in both areas deteriorated overnight and were not expected to improve in the near term, the Queensland Fire and Emergency Services said.
The most significant blazes burning as of midday Thursday are at Noosa North Shore on the Sunshine Coast, Woodgate and Black Snake.
On Thursday morning, more than 70 fires were burning across the state after the current crisis erupted a week ago.
While authorities were keeping a close eye on Woodgate, Black Snake and Noosa North Shore on Thursday, firefighters were preparing to make the most of a brief respite in the weather to strengthen containment lines.
Scientists and experts warn that Australia’s fire season has grown longer and more intense due to climate change.
Officials have confirmed that 2018 and 2017 were Australia’s third and fourth-hottest years on record respectively, and last year the nation experineced its warmest summer on record.
The Bureau of Meteorology’s State of the Climate 2018 report said climate change lad led to an increase in extreme heat events and raised the severity of other natural disasters, such as drought.
