2009 wildfires in Australia (case study)

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  • Created by: roseb00d
  • Created on: 27-04-23 21:16
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  • 2009 wildfires in Australia (Case study)
    • location
      • south-eastern Australia
        • victorica
          • near Melbourne
      • why was this location so vulnerable?
        • large areas of eucaliptus forests
          • full of oil - fuel
        • often reaches 40^c
        • the humidity is often 7-15% which is perfect for wildfires
        • high winds- 60mph
          • iron power cables can be brought down by strong winds
        • lightning strikes common in the summer
        • rural areas facing depopulation - degrading emergency services, derelict buildings
    • background and causes
      • 400 different fires on the 7th of feb
        • nicknamed "black saturday bushfires"
      • there were high winds that were dry
      • winds at 60mph
      • believed to have started in multiple places
        • the starts of the fire was:
          • arson
          • lightning
          • falling power cables
          • sparks from machinary
    • primary impacts
      • fatalities: 173 dead including one firefighter
      • property: 3500
        • 2000 homes
        • 1500 farm properties
      • large areas of national parks were damaged along with the animals they contained
        • the RSPCA estimate 1 million animals died during the wildfire
      • agricultural losses
        • it is estimated that 12,000 livestock died during the fire
        • thousands of kilometers of perimeter fences destroyed
        • grain, hay, fodder, crops and plantation timber were all burned
    • Secondary impacts
      • 7000 people displaced
      • 60,000 residence in melbourne without power
      • A number of cases of looting
      • A$4.4 billion costs including infrastructure
    • Responses to future wildfires
      • Oct 2009 new hazards system was introduced
      • Bureau of meteorology would forcast the fire danger index (FDI)
        • as well as temperature, humidity, wind speed and dryness
      • new building regulations

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