Australia sending aid to wildfire towns as death toll rises

Australia deployed military ships and aircraft on Wednesday to help communities ravd by apocalyptic wildfires that have left at least 17 people de nationwide and sent thousands of residents and holidaymakers fleeing to shoreline. 
Navy ships and military aircraft were bringing water, food and fuel to towns where supplies were depleted and ros were cut off by fires. Authorities confirmed three bodies were found Wednesday at Lake Conjola on south coast of New South Wales, bringing death toll in state to 15. 
More than 175 homes have been destroyed in region.

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On Tuesday morning, 4,000 people in coastal town of Mallacoota fled to shore as winds pushed a fire toward ir homes under a sky darkened by smoke and turned blood-red by flames. Stranded residents and vacationers slept in ir cars, and gas stations and surf clubs transformed into evacuation areas. Dozens of homes burned before winds changed direction late Tuesday, sparing rest of town.
Victoria Emergency Commissioner Andrew Crisp told reporters Australian Defence Force was moving naval assets to Mallacoota on a supply mission that would last two weeks and helicopters would also fly in more firefighters since ros were inaccessible.
Conditions cooled Wednesday, but fire danger remained very high across state, where four people are missing.
“We have three months of hot wear to come. We do have a dynamic and a dangerous fire situation across state,” Crisp said.

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In New South Wales town of Conjola Park, 89 properties were confirmed destroyed and cars were melted by Tuesday’s fires. More than 100 fires were still burning in state Wednesday, though ne were at an emergency level. Seven people have died this week, including a volunteer firefighter, a man found in a burnt-out car and a far and son who died in ir house.
Firefighting crews took vant of easing conditions on Wednesday to restore power to critical infrastructure and conduct some back burning, before conditions were expected to deteriorate Saturday as high temperatures and strong winds return.
"re is every potential that conditions on Saturday will be as b or worse than we saw yesterday," New South Wales Rural Fire Service Deputy Commissioner Rob Rogers said.
early and devastating start to Australia’s summer wildfires has led authorities to rate this season worst on record and reignited debate about wher Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s conservative government has taken eugh action on climate change. Australia is world’s largest exporter of coal and liquefied natural gas, but Morrison rejected calls last month to downsize Australia’s lucrative coal industry.
Morrison won a surprise third term in May. Among his government’s pledges was to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 26% to 28% by 2030 — a modest figure compared to center-left opposition Labor party’s pledge of 45%.

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leer of mir Australian Greens party, Richard Di Natale, demanded a royal commission, nation’s highest form of inquiry, on wildfire crisis.
“If he (Morrison) refuses to do so, we will be moving for a parliamentary commission of inquiry with royal commission-like powers as soon as parliament returns,” Di Natale said in a statement.
About 5 million hectares (12.35 million acres) of land have burned nationwide over past few months, with at least 17 people de and more than 1,000 homes destroyed.
Some communities canceled New Year’s fireworks celebrations, but Sydney’s popular display over its iconic harbor controversially went ahe in front of more than a million revelers. city was granted an exemption to a total fireworks ban in place re and elsewhere to prevent new wildfires.
Smoke from wildfires meant Canberra, nation’s capital, on Wednesday h air quality more than 21 times hazardous rating to be reportedly worst in world.
smoke has also wafted across Tasman Sea and into New Zealand.