Extreme bushfire risk issued for much of southern WA
The brutal heat continues in Western Australia with 25 schools closed today amid an increased bushfire risk. Temperatures are expected to be over 40 degrees.
Transcript
00:00 So far today there has been no blazes but winds are expected to pick up this afternoon
00:08 as temperatures peak later today.
00:11 45 degrees is among the highest of the region but the biggest concern for fire authorities
00:17 today they're expecting winds that can reach up to 50 kilometres an hour in some parts
00:23 of the south west so that's what firefighters are most concerned about today.
00:27 And the Department of Education, Lauren, has closed a number of schools.
00:31 What can you tell us about that?
00:34 27 schools are closed across the state and there hasn't been a closure of that wide of
00:40 a scale for some years in Western Australia.
00:43 Parents were told late yesterday afternoon not to send their children to school due to
00:48 forecasted heat and bushfire risk.
00:52 In the south west region, schools in major centres such as Bridgetown and Mangimup are
00:58 closed while in the Great Southern where most of the closures are, students have been told
01:03 not to attend in places such as Cogenup and Ravensthorpe.
01:08 And how have fire authorities prepared for these conditions?
01:13 Well the Department of Fire and Emergency Services has issued extreme danger ratings
01:18 for today.
01:19 DFES has brought in extra support and told the ABC it's based four water bombers at the
01:26 Albany airport today to respond quickly to any fires and volunteers have also been put
01:32 on alert.
01:33 The DFES Commissioner Darren Clem said in a briefing yesterday afternoon that these
01:39 were the most dangerous bushfire conditions in two years.
01:45 So it's been a long bushfire season for many firefighters in the region, already several
01:50 emergency bushfires near Albany and in the south west.
01:55 So at this point now it's really just a waiting game for authorities and residents hoping
02:01 there's no bushfires sparked up in the hot and gusty winds today.
02:05 [BLANK_AUDIO]