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MYSTERIOUS: Black summer - What They Never Told You

Despite years of rain, Blue Mountains forests still haven’t recovered from the Black Summer megafires

For three years before the Black Summer megafires of 2019–20, cool season rainfall in southeastern Australia was only half that of normal. When fires broke out, intensely dry conditions helped them spread through areas typically resistant to burning, such as wetlands and rainforests.

The Conversation

What Europe can learn from Australia's 'Black Summer' wildfires

Australians share their hard-earned wildfire strategies with Europe, which is grappling with severe blazes. Effective preparation and hazard mitigation are crucial for managing such extreme fire scenarios. It is important to resist complacency, given the shifting weather patterns. Open dialogue with communities is essential during crisis situations. Addressing climate change…

The Economic Times

Flash droughts pull ‘alarming’ amounts of moisture from the landscape and intensify wildfires: new research

When catastrophic wildfires capture global headlines, such as the unprecedented blazes sweeping through southern Europe this summer or the devastating 2019–20 “Black Summer” in Australia, they are almost always preceded by severe drought. Dry vegetation and parched landscapes are necessary ingredients for infernos.

The Conversation

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Lake mud reveals 7,000 years of Kangaroo Island’s complex fire history

During the summer of 2019–2020, half of Australia’s third largest island was on fire. Kangaroo Island, also known as Karta Pintingga or Karti in local mainland Aboriginal languages, was one of the worst-hit places during the Black Summer fires. Two people lost their lives and almost all the remnant vegetation…

The Conversation

'Best boy': koala saviour Bear hangs up rescue boots

The canine hero who helped find more than 100 koalas in burnt-out forests during the Black Summer bushfires is hanging up his boots after a decade of service.

AAP

Scott Morrison and Dan Andrews got it wrong. Here are 7 ways to get crisis leadership right

Five years ago, as Australia burned through the catastrophic Black Summer bushfires, then-Prime Minister Scott Morrison was photographed relaxing on a Hawaiian beach.

The Conversation

In the most cleared state in Australia, Victoria’s native wildlife needs our help after fires

Victoria has just suffered some of its worst bushfires since the Black Summer fires of 2019–20. Over 400,000 hectares are estimated to have burnt so far, an area more than five times larger than Singapore.

The Conversation

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Bushfire peril as heatwave advances across the nation

Bushfires have ignited on the first day of some of the worst heatwave conditions since Black Summer and authorities warn more is to come.

AAP

Australians feel the heat as bushfire threat flares up

Authorities are warning people to be on high alert as several states prepare for intense heatwave conditions not seen since the Black Summer bushfires.

AAP

Alarm sounds on ignoring deadly climate workplace risks

Climate change puts workers at huge risk, politicians have been told by nurses that treated mass thunderstorm asthma and firies who tackled Black Summer blazes.

AAP

Abnormally hot days may hit Australia’s south-east after rare sudden warming over Antarctica

Phenomenon extremely unusual in southern hemisphere and last occurred in 2019 when it contributed to worsening of black summer bushfires

The Guardian - AU

New research shows Black Summer’s megafires left lasting scars far beyond property damage

Beginning in the second half of 2019, what we now know as the Black Summer fires began devastating eastern Australia.

The Conversation

Why AI-powered cameras are watching Australian forests

Artificial intelligence technology will be deployed in more Australian forests in an investment inspired by the devastating Black Summer bushfires.

AAP

US firefighters' widows sue over 'tragic' plane crash

The widows of two American airmen killed in a plane crash during the Black Summer bushfires have accused fire authorities of negligence and are seeking damages.

AAP

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The Conversation

Australia’s native bees struggled after the Black Summer fires – but a world-first solution brought them buzzing back

After a devastating bushfire, efforts to help nature recover typically focus on vertebrates and plants. Yet extreme fires can threaten insects, too.

AAP

'We started a fire': ADF criticised over major blaze

A "systemic failure" by the Australian Defence Force has been partly blamed for a major Black Summer blaze sparked by an army helicopter.

AAP

Black Summer scars just below surface five years on

Five years after the Black Summer bushfires, survivors are reflecting on their experiences and calling for urgent action to prevent repeat disasters.

AAP

'A lot of anguish out there': lessons from Black Summer

A mobile stage dubbed Beryl has helped bring bushfire-affected towns together, as research highlights the need for recovery funds years after disaster strikes.

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The Conversation

As the Black Summer megafires neared, people rallied to save wildlife and domestic animals. But it came at a real cost

As the 2019-2020 megafires took hold across eastern Australia, many of us reeled at the sight of animals trying and often failing to flee. Our screens filled up with images of koalas with burned paws and possums in firefighter helmets.

AAP

Map reveals Australian hotspots at risk of bushfire

Cyclones, floods, heatwaves and bushfires - authorities are warning large parts of Australia are at increased risk this summer and people need to be prepared.

AAP

Koala park census sparks fresh survival hopes

After the Black Summer bushfires ravaged NSW's koala population, analysis has found a proposed national park area contains around 12,000 of the native animals.

AAP

Unburnt wildlife refuge to be sacrificed for homes

A forested haven for species in danger of extinction will be turned into a housing estate after escaping the Black Summer bushfires.

AAP

Forestry Corporation fined $360k for cutting down trees

New conditions imposed following the Black Summer bushfires did not stop the felling of 53 trees, with a court accepting a pattern of environmental offending.

The Independent UK

The ‘Black Summer’ blazes scorched more than half of this wildlife-rich, rugged Australian outpost, but James Litston finds a place where the green shoots of recovery are blooming

Newcastle Herald

'Buried in the ice': Black Summer conditions found seven times in the past

Song of fire and ice in Antarctica sparks bushfire warning.

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