Australian Military Aircraft And Ships Deployed As Fires Continue To Spread

Australian military aircraft and navy ships are being deployed to help emergency services in New South Wales and Victoria, where bushfires continue to ravage large areas of land.

Thousands have had to flee to beaches to get to safety as the fires spread, with around 4,000 doing so in Mallacoota, Victoria, to an apocalyptic red-sky backdrop.

At the request of the Victorian government, Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Defence Minister Linda Reynolds have now agreed to send aircraft and vessels from the military.

The HMAS Choules, which the Daily Telegraph says specialises in responding to humanitarian crises, left Sydney and headed to Mallacoota, carrying fresh water, medical aid, food and temporary shelter.

At a media conference on Wednesday, Andrew Crisp - Victoria's emergency management commissioner - announced that authorities are now considering evacuation by sea.

As the HMAS Choules obviously cannot carry all of those stranded, Crisp said they would be prioritising those in most need.

PA

"It doesn't have the current capacity for everyone at Mallacoota," he explained.

"My understanding it has a capacity of 1,000 people. If we were to do that, we would be prioritising those.

"We are exploring all our options... and certainly to look at evacuating some people from Mallacoota by sea is an option we're seriously considering."

PA

Crisp also said Black Hawk helicopters would be deployed to help crews help battle the fires.

"They give us additional capability," he said.

"They're able to fly at night. Although not dropping water on fires at night, that will give us a great intelligence capability overnight."

Residents in Mallacoota have been told it's now too unsafe to try and leave the area and the best course of action is to stay put and take shelter.

According to the BBC, the recent fires have killed at least eight people in south-eastern Australia since Monday. Two people also remain missing.

The new deaths bring the number of fire-related fatalities in Australia this season to at least 18.

Topics: News, Australia

Jess Hardiman

Jess is a journalist at LADbible who graduated from Manchester University with a degree in Film Studies, English Language and Linguistics - indecisiveness at its finest, right there. She also works for FOODbible and its sister page Seitanists, which are both a safe haven for her to channel a love for homemade pasta, fennel and everything else in between. You can contact Jess at [email protected].

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