This archive report was first published on 10 January 2020.
Fires Threaten Australian Towns That Have Already Burned Once ¶
January 10, 2020
Areas of Victoria State and South Australia were under evacuation orders as high winds drove megablazes back toward towns that had already burned at least once before. In Batlow, an apple-growing town in New South Wales, residents who had only just been allowed to return scrambled to figure out what was lost and how to protect what remained.
"It's like the fire is a sentient being," said Sulari Gentill, a novelist with a husband and a son who are volunteer firefighters in Batlow. "It feels like it's coming to get us."
Residents of towns that have already been hit by fire are caught in a smoky, delirious in-between, struggling to determine the day of the week and wondering why one house went up in flames and the one next door did not.
For many, the fires have become villains that stick around long enough to reveal their personalities. Firefighters swear at them for their cunning unpredictability, while those who have seen them firsthand marvel at their destructive power.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced a thorough review of the fires and the government's response, but stopped short of pledging to act more aggressively on cutting heat-trapping emissions or making plans to accelerate Australia's efforts to adapt to climate change.
As the fires surged, calls reporting spot fires in Batlow started to come in. The authorities in Victoria added several towns to emergency notices, with about a dozen deemed to be too dangerous for anyone to stay.
