The Impact of Australian Wildfires

What You Need To Know

Since September 2019, wildfires have spread and burned over 16 million acres of land in Australia. For reference, that’s eight times the area that burned here in the United States in California during 2018.

The fires have turned the sky blood red (as shown on the right) and filled with a thick smoke. In many Australian cities, the air is unsafe to breath in, causing them to evacuate.

So far, states of emergency have been declared in New South Wales and Victoria. Although Australia has sent out troops to aid in evacuation and preservation, many of Australia’s firefighters are volunteers. Many have quit their real paying jobs to fight the fires. Due to this, Australia’s government created the National Bushfire Recovery Agency to help fund and authorize official payments for the firefighter volunteers.

Impact On Australian Wildlife

As the fires continue to spread through Australia, it’s estimated that 1 billion animals have been killed. While many have been burned alive, many are dying due to the lack of natural resources that have been ruined by the flames.

Larger animals, like kangaroos, will be able to escape the approaching fire. However, the less mobile (koalas) or smaller animals (possums) are definitely in danger of being burned by the fire. On the left, a female koala recovers from burns at the Port Macquarie Koala Hospital in Australia. Nearly 8,000 koalas have died from these fires and far more have been burned. It’s hard to pinpoint how many reptiles have been killed since many of them live in the soil, a “good thermal insulator” says Colin Beale, an ecologist from the University of New York.

With animals adding to the death toll, at least a dozen people have been killed, thousands evacuated, houses demolished, millions of acres scorched, and natural resources ruined. The fires are expected to rage for another month.

Celebrities Step Up

Elton John, Kylie Jenner, and Australian actor Chris Hemsworth, have each donated $1 million to various relief efforts in Australia. In a video that was shared on Twitter, Elton John said he was “in awe of the work the firefighters are doing.” Hemsworth shared a video on Instagram encouraging his followers to join him in his contribution. “Every dollar counts,” he says.

Patricia Arquette, a recent 2020 Golden Globe winner, used her time during her acceptance speech to urge everyone to focus on Australia and the future of our world. As she ends her speech she states she loves her “kids so much” and she begs “all of us to give them a better world.”

Nick Kroll, a comedian who is currently on tour in Australia, and Australian actor Joel Edgerton posted a video to Twitter asking people to donate to the NSW Rural Fire Service. They expressed their gratitude towards those who were giving up their time to battle the fires. They created a hashtag that encouraged people who want to help to start by donating $5.