What was the impact of the Black Saturday bushfires?
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Consequences. The Black Saturday bushfires killed 173 people, 120 in the Kinglake area alone. Another 414 people were injured. More than 450,000 hectares had burned and 3,500 buildings including more than 2,000 houses destroyed.
How many died in the Black Saturday fires?
173Black Saturday bushfires / Number of deaths
While the exact amount of land these wildfires scorched is disuputed, it is agreed the area burned was greater than 4,500 square kilometers (1,737 square miles). The fires also destroyed 2,029 homes, and killed 173 people. Recovery cost more than a billion dollars.
What caused the Black Saturday bushfire?
The Black Saturday fires began with the Kilmore East fire when fallen power-lines started a blaze in farmland at 11.47 am. This fire spread quickly through a pine plantation and crossed the Hume Freeway at 1.58 pm. The fire burnt through Wandong and reached Mount Disappointment at approximately 3 pm.
How is fire danger rating calculated?
In summary, fire danger rating is a numeric scaling of the potential over a large area for fires to ignite, spread, and require fire suppression action. It is derived by applying local observations of current or predicted conditions of fuel, weather, and topographic factors to a set of complex science-based equations.
How did Black Saturday affect the environment?
One of the major impacts from the Black Saturday bushfires was the huge amount of loss on flora and fauna. The RSPCA estimated that over one million animals died from the Black Saturday bushfires, and the animals that did survive were severely burnt.
What areas were affected by Black Saturday?
On 7 February, Black Saturday, Victorian townships including Marysville, Kinglake, Kinglake West, Narbethong, Flowerdale and Strathewen were devastated. More than 19,000 CFA members were involved in frontline firefighting, incident management and support behind the scenes.
What was the worst fire in Australia?
the Black Saturday fires
In terms of loss of life and property damage, the Black Saturday fires rank as the most devastating in Australian history. The 2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission was called to investigate the Victorian government’s strategy regarding bushfires.
How many fires were there on Black Saturday?
One hundred and seventy three people died, thousands of homes and other dwellings were destroyed and over 400,000 hectares were burnt. More than 78 communities across Victoria were directly affected….Important contacts.
| Emergency | Triple Zero (000) |
|---|---|
| Burn-off notification | 1800 668 511 |
| CFA Headquarters | (03) 9262 8444 |
How is burn index calculated?
The Burning Index is a number related to the contribution of fire behavior to the effort of containing a fire. The BI is derived from a combination of Spread and Energy Release Components. It is expressed as a numeric value closely related to the flame length in feet multiplied by ten.
What do each of the fire danger ratings mean?
The Bush Fire Danger Ratings give you an indication of the possible consequences of a fire, if one was to start. Bush Fire Danger Ratings are based on predicted conditions such as temperature, humidity, wind and the dryness of the landscape. The higher the fire danger rating, the more dangerous the conditions.
How did the Marysville fire start?
Houses just to the north of Yarra Glen were destroyed and large areas of grassy paddocks burnt. Investigators initially believed that the cause of the fire that originated near the Murrundindi Mill and swept through Narbethong and Marysville was arson, with several suspects investigated.
How long did it take to recover from Black Saturday?
a slump in life satisfaction from three to five years after the bushfires, which improved again at ten years after the bushfires.
What is the McArthur forest fire danger index?
The McArthur Forest Fire Danger Index (FFDI) was developed in the 1960s by CSIRO scientist A. G. McArthur to measure the degree of danger of fire in Australian forests. The index combines a record of dryness, based on rainfall and evaporation, with meteorological variables for wind speed, temperature and humidity.
What is the fire danger rating for a forest fire?
Fire danger rating; Category Fire Danger Index Forest Grassland Catastrophic (Code Red) 100 + 150 + Extreme: 75–99 100–149 Severe: 50–74 50–99 Very High: 25–49 25–49 High: 12–24 12–24 Low–Moderate: 0–11 0–11
What were the Black Saturday fires?
The Black Saturday fires were Australia’s most devastating bush fires. They occurred in the state of Victoria on Saturday, 7 February 2009.
What are the fire danger ratings for grassland fuels?
For grassland fuels the threshold FDI values for the Extreme and Catastrophic ratings were increased to 100 and 150 respectively. Fire danger ratings are determined by the responsible fire agency in each jurisdiction, based on weather information provided by the Bureau of Meteorology and fuel information.