Images Show Australian Hillside 'Glowing In The Dark' As Bushfire Crisis Continues
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The devastating bushfires that continue to blaze across Australia are still wiping out landscapes, including racing across Balmattum Hill Bushland Reserve and threatening the neighbouring town, which has led to a mass evacuation.
The Balmattum Hill Bushland Reserve in Euroa, just 164 km north-west of Melbourne, has been described as 'glowing in the dark' due to hundreds of spot fires that lit up the hillside leading to a potential mass evacuation of nearby residents.
One resident Melissa Eriksen, captured the terrifying image and posted it to Facebook saying: "Balmattum Hill is really glowing tonight, however not as much as all of our incredible and selfless emergency services. Thank you."
In an interview with news.com.au, Ms Eriksen describes seeing more than 40 fire trucks, three helicopters and three aircrafts before 9am to get the blaze under control. Describing the ongoing scenes, Ms Eriksen told the press: "Balmattum Hill is a place I have walked all my life and it appeared to be covered in lava under the darkness.
"The photo is beautiful yet terrifying.
"Our emergency services did an incredible job containing the fire and preventing any loss of houses."
The image of the striking red fires spanning across the hillside has also been shared by Maindample Rural Fire Brigade with the caption: "Looks like lava."
Another resident of the area, Jackson Leslight, said his home wouldn't have survived the fire burning on the hill if the wind hadn't changed direction.
Mr Leslight, his parents and his girlfriend had only 15 minutes to pack the essentials as the flames reached within 400m of their home. However due to a change in wind direction, the flames could be contained and they didn't need to flee their home.
Speaking in an interview to Herald Sun, Mr Leslight said: "'It's almost like looking at the night sky when you're looking down from a plane on top of a city. I haven't seen anything like that. It was sort of morbidly beautiful, to be honest."
The hillside fire in Euroa was declared under control just after 2pm on Sunday, after it burned 385 hectares of land. Firefighters and other emergency services remained active in the area that afternoon.
While the fire in Balmattum Hill Bushland Reserve has been brought back under control, the bushfires across Australia continue to blaze with the total death toll now standing at more than 20 across the country. There are also fears that entire species of wildlife could have been wiped out across Australia as a result of the devastating fires.
Featured Image Credit: Melissa Eriksen/Facebook
Topics: World News, Bushfires, Australia
