So this wkeend has been absolutely roasting!! Sat and Sun both topped 37 degrees, and with the bushfires burning in Victoria the smog & ash in the air is second to none. I have never witnessed anything like it - its what I imagine post-nuclear war to look like.
They have advised those with asthma, allergies and contact lenses wearers to stay in and avoid the smog. I havent been able to wear my lenses for weeks - its like Chernobyl. They predice the worse bush fires ever in history, people in work are worried about their holiday homes and whether they are still going to be there over the xmas holiday:
SOURCE :THE AGE NEWSPAPER.
Total fire ban statewide. Bushfire hotline 1800 240 667
Victorian firefighters have laboured through the night to reinforce containment lines in preparation for extreme bushfire conditions expected today.
More than 420,000 hectares have been burnt out across the state as 11 bushfires continue to rage out of control in Gippsland and the state`s north-east.
The situation is tipped to worsen today with temperatures tipped to climb into the 30s with wind gusts of up to 50kmh.
Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) spokesman Kevin Monk said firefighters had done all they possibly could.
"I think we could always do with more time and even conditions to do backburning but I think we`ve known this day has been coming ... and I think the crucial work has been done," Mr Monk said.
"I think they`re (the conditions) not as extreme as they were on the weekend but the strong winds are always a concern to us, there`ll be spotting embers in a lot of communities right around these fires."
More than 4000 firefighters are working to protect property and stop the fires` spread.
Mr Monk said one of the main priorities was strengthening a 60km control line around the Thompson Dam to protect the state`s water supply from the Mt Terrible blaze.
Two of the biggest fires merged into one on Tuesday night, creating a mega-fire that now stretches at least 120km in length from Whitfield to Dargo.
After joining, the North East Alpine fires and Darling-Cynthia and Blanket Wood, Mount Hump, Scrubby Creek fires have blacked out 372,000 hectares.
The DSE is predicting those fires will merge with other fires at Mt Ligar and Mt Terrible in the state`s east today.
The communities in a big arc from Dargo to Valencia Creek - those to the south and east of the major bushfires - are expected to come under most threat.
These areas include Mt Beauty, in the north east, and Dargo, Waterford, Castleburn, Licola and Glencairn in Gippsland.
A threat warning was lifted for Glencairn yesterday, but residents were being told to remain on high alert with fire still within three kilometres of the town.
The Grampians -
Rising from the ashes of the January fires, the Grampians region reveals a magical ecological kingdom reborn, just waiting to be discovered. Far from being burnt or broken, the Grampians National Park remains one of Australia`s premier tourist destinations displaying a mosaic of verdant new vegetation.
Declared a National Park in 1984, The Grampians National Park is an oasis of diversity, set amongst the agricultural Western District of Victoria. The 167,000 acres house around a third of Victoria`s plant species, and forms a safe haven for many species of marsupial and mammal.
The region has become immensely popular with a wide demographic, and understandably so - the park has something to offer everyone. Outlandish rock architecture is covered with gently undulating native forest . . . wildlife is abundant and viewable . . . the air is crisp . . . and during spring, the park vibrates with colour.
Waterfalls in the Grampians
Discover stunning waterfalls all around the Grampians region. MacKenzie Falls is one of Victorias largest and most spectacular waterfalls
MacKenzie Falls is one of four falls in the MacKenzie River Gorge. It flows all year round, but is best viewed between June and October. After rain, torrents of water cascade over huge cliffs into a deep pool, sending fine sprays of rainbow mist high into the air above a stunning gorge.
Named by explorer Mitchell on the 21st. of July 1836, the MacKenzie River rises in the higher reaches of The Grampians and flows north-westward through Zumsteins towards Mt. Zero