18 January 2013 (New Scientist) – All eyes have been on Australia in recent weeks as a blistering heatwave triggered huge wildfires. The result has been a slew of amazing stories, including a family escaping by jumping into the sea and meteorologists adding new colours to heat maps. But Australia’s fires are just the most […]
By Ilya Gridneff, Tom Arup, and Jacob Saulwick19 January 2013 SYDNEY, Australia (SMH) – Sydney endured its hottest ever day on Friday, with records smashed across the city and thousands of people suffering from the heat. The mercury topped 45.8 at Sydney’s Observatory Hill at 2.55pm, breaking the previous record set in 1939 by half […]
By Tim Barlass17 January 2013 Prime Minister Julia Gillard flew into Coonabarabran on Thursday to witness first-hand the devastating effects of the bushfire that claimed at least 49 homes. At a press conference, the Prime Minister announced financial support for those who had lost homes or been evacuated. Ms Gillard drove through the Timor Road […]
By Ilya Gridneff and Kristen Amiet15 January 2013 (Sydney Morning Herald) – The worst bushfires in NSW for more than a decade have ripped through the state’s north-west, taking 33 homes and destroying 40,000 hectares [154 square miles] of land. More than 80 Rural Fire Service volunteers supported by 18 aircraft spent most of Monday […]
By Luke Harding 9 January 2013 (guardian.co.uk) – The tornadoes of fire came from two directions. They quickly engulfed the small Tasmanian fishing town of Dunally, and swept towards the home where Tim and Tammy Holmes were babysitting their five grandchildren. There was no escape. No way out. And so the family did the only […]
By Peter Hannam, Carbon economy editor8 January 2013 (Sydney Morning Herald) – Australia’s exposure to natural risks is on the increase and governments at all levels should step up joint efforts to limit the losses and prevent insurance costs from spiralling higher, one of the country’s biggest insurers says. Modest investments in flood or fire […]
9 January 2013 (Desdemona Despair) – In February 2009, Desdemona was new to blogging. The world was still reeling from the global financial collapse caused by the deregulated, automated, shadow banking system – currently valued at $67 trillion and growing! Global warming was fading into the background of the public consciousness. Except in Australia, where […]
By Peter Hannam, Carbon economy editor8 January 2013 Australia’s “exceptional” heatwave has produced record-breaking temperatures, with at least six of the first seven days of 2013 among the top 20 hottest days in the past century. The extreme January heat has prompted the Bureau of Meteorology to issue a special climate statement, with further updates […]
6 January 2012 (BBC) – Australian police are searching fire-ravaged towns in southern Tasmania looking for 100 unaccounted people. Tasmania’s police commissioner said he feared lives may have been lost in the wildfires which swept through parts of the island in recent days. Almost 3,000 people have been evacuated from their homes, many stranded in […]
By Stephanie Gardiner7 January 2013 THE heatwave Sydney has managed to avoid is due to hit on Tuesday, as firefighters prepare for the most dangerous bushfire conditions in years in the city and around the state. […] Some of the hottest areas in the state at the weekend were in the far west and the […]
