Victoria bushfires LIVE: Out-of-control bushfire threatens towns as firefighters prepare for devastating day
Firefighters are facing extreme difficulty as they battle blazes across the state today, and brace for further challenging conditions, Emergency Management Commissioner Rick Nugent said.
Addressing reporters just now, Nugent said gusty northerly winds were pushing some of the fire at the Grampians National Park south.
Emergency Management Victoria Commissioner Rick Nugent pictured in January this year. Credit: Paul Jeffers
“It’s also making it difficult for any new starts that occur across the state, which [we] have had a number of already,” he said.“This will be followed by a change in wind conditions that will move across to the southwest … which, again, [makes] it really problematic for firefighters with any of those existing fires.”
The Grampians National Park fire has already burnt about 55,000 hectares of land, causing significant damage including environmental damage, livestock losses, and damage to outbuildings and sheds.
“We have no reports as yet of residential homes [destroyed], but there are many residents [at the] Grampians, so I wouldn’t be surprised at some point if we do have residential losses,” he said.
