Adelaide Hills bushfires

Last updated

The Adelaide Hills bushfires of 1939 were a series of bushfires in the Adelaide Hills, South Australia that burned from 10 to 14 January. There had been ample rain during the winter of 1938 resulting in heavy understorey, but drought set in toward the end of the year. A heatwave in early January 1939 ensured the fuel load was very dry and particularly susceptible to fire. The fires were finally extinguished when thunderstorms arrived during Saturday evening of 14 January.

Damage was assessed at £650,000, including the destruction of ninety houses. There were no deaths, but the fire highlighted the inadequacy of South Australia's fire-fighting capability. Six thousand city volunteers had helped to combat the fires, using mainly branches and wet bags. As a result, the Emergency Fire Service was set up, the precursor to the modern Country Fire Service. [1]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black Friday bushfires</span> Series of bushfires in Australia in 1939

The Black Friday bushfires of 13 January 1939, in Victoria, Australia, were part of the devastating 1938–1939 bushfire season in Australia, which saw bushfires burning for the whole summer, and ash falling as far away as New Zealand. It was calculated that three-quarters of the State of Victoria was directly or indirectly affected by the disaster, while other Australian states and the Australian Capital Territory were also badly hit by fires and extreme heat. As of 3 November 2011, the event was one of the worst recorded bushfires in Australia, and the third most deadly.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ash Wednesday bushfires</span> 1983 brushfires in Australia

The Ash Wednesday bushfires, known in South Australia as Ash Wednesday II, were a series of bushfires that occurred in south-eastern Australia on 16 February 1983, which was Ash Wednesday. Within twelve hours, more than 180 fires fanned by hot winds of up to 110 km/h (68 mph) caused widespread destruction across the states of Victoria and South Australia. Years of severe drought and extreme weather combined to create one of Australia's worst fire days in a century. The fires were the deadliest bushfire in Australian history until the Black Saturday bushfires in 2009.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Lofty</span> Mountain in South Australia

Mount Lofty is the highest point in the southern Mount Lofty Ranges. It is located about 15 km (9.3 mi) east of the Adelaide city centre, within the Cleland National Park in the Adelaide Hills area of South Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marble Hill, South Australia</span> Town in South Australia

Marble Hill was the Vice-Regal summer residence for the Governor of South Australia for seventy-five years, from 1880 to 1955. It is also the name of a ward of the Adelaide Hills Council, and a suburb, both named after the residence and in which the residence is located. It is about 20 kilometres (12 mi) east of Adelaide between the towns of Ashton and Cherryville, and has expansive views of the Adelaide Hills to the North and East, and the Adelaide Plains to the West.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Happy Valley, South Australia</span> Suburb of Adelaide, South Australia

Happy Valley is a metropolitan suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It is located 20 km south of the Central Business District of Adelaide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mount Lofty Fire Tower</span>

The Mount Lofty Fire Tower sits on top of Mount Lofty in the Adelaide Hills just to the east of the city of Adelaide, South Australia. The 34m high tower has a commanding view over a huge area of the rural areas surrounding Adelaide, and on a clear day the view can extend to as far as Kangaroo Island to the southwest, Monarto to the east, the Fleurieu Peninsula to the south, and the grassy plains beyond Two Wells to the north. The tower is used to spot fires in the Adelaide Hills and surrounds on days of very high or extreme fire danger during summer. The spotting crew determine the location of a smoke sighting by taking a bearing and then calculating distance using topographic maps. Details of the sighting are then passed to the 'Adelaide Fire' Communications Centre who despatch the nearest fire brigade.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2006–07 Australian bushfire season</span> Australian bushfire

One of the most extensive bushfire seasons in Australia's history. Victoria experienced the longest continuously burning bushfire complex in Australia's history, with fires in the Victorian Alps and Gippsland burning over 1 million hectares of land over the course of 69 days. See Bushfires in Australia for an explanation of regional seasons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eyre Peninsula bushfire, 2005</span>

The Eyre Peninsula bushfire of 2005, an event also known locally as Black Tuesday and by South Australian Government agencies as the Wangary bushfire, was a bushfire that occurred during January 2005 on the lower part of the Eyre Peninsula, a significant part of South Australia's wheat belt, where most of the land is either cropped or grazed. The fire resulted in 780 square kilometres (301 sq mi) of land being burnt, the loss of nine lives, injury to another 115 people, and huge property damage. It was South Australia's worst bushfire since the Ash Wednesday fires of 1983. Heat from the fire reached 1,000 °C (1,830 °F), with speeds up to 100 kilometres per hour (62 mph).

St Aloysius College is a Catholic, day school for girls, situated in Adelaide, South Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bushfires in Australia</span> Frequently occurring wildfire events

Bushfires in Australia are a widespread and regular occurrence that have contributed significantly to shaping the nature of the continent over millions of years. Eastern Australia is one of the most fire-prone regions of the world, and its predominant eucalyptus forests have evolved to thrive on the phenomenon of bushfire. However, the fires can cause significant property damage and loss of both human and animal life. Bushfires have killed approximately 800 people in Australia since 1851, and billions of animals.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black Sunday bushfires</span>

The Black Sunday bushfires were a series of bushfires that broke out across South Australia on 2 January 1955. Extreme morning temperatures coupled with strong north-westerly winds contributed to the breakout of numerous fires in Adelaide Hills, Jamestown, Waterloo, Kingston and Millicent. Most were caused by sparks from powerlines in the wind.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2009–10 Australian bushfire season</span>

A bushfire season occurred predominantly from June 2009 to May 2010. Increased attention has been given to this season as authorities and government attempt to preempt any future loss of life after the Black Saturday bushfires during the previous season, 2008–09. Long range weather observations predict very hot, dry and windy weather conditions during the summer months, leading to a high risk of bushfire occurrence.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2012–13 Australian bushfire season</span>

The summer of 2012–13, had above average fire potential for most of the southern half of the continent from the east coast to the west. This is despite having extensive fire in parts of the country over the last 12 months. The reason for this prediction is the abundant grass growth spurred by two La Niña events over the last two years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2014–15 Australian bushfire season</span>

The bushfire season in the summer of 2014–15, was expected to have the potential for many fires in eastern Australia after lower than expected rainfall was received in many areas. Authorities released warnings in the early spring that the season could be particularly bad.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 Sampson Flat bushfires</span> Bushfire in the 2014–15 Australian bushfire season

The 2015 Sampson Flat fires were a series of bushfires in the Australian state of South Australia, the area affected was predominantly the northern Adelaide Hills and the outer Adelaide metropolitan area. The fire began on 2 January 2015 during a day of extreme heat and lasted until 9 January 2015; and burnt more than 20,000 hectares.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 Pinery bushfire</span> Bushfire in the 2015–16 Australian bushfire season

The 2015 Pinery bushfire was a bushfire that burned from 25 November to 2 December 2015, and primarily affected the Lower Mid North and west Barossa Valley regions immediately north of Gawler in the Australian state of South Australia. At least 86,000 hectares of scrub and farmland in the council areas of Light, Wakefield, Clare and Gilbert Valleys, and Mallala were burned during its duration.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2019–20 Australian bushfire season</span> Major natural disaster

The 2019–20 Australian bushfire season or Black Summer was a period of bushfires in many parts of Australia, which, due to its unusual intensity, size, duration, and uncontrollable dimension, is considered a megafire. The Australian National University reported that the area burned in 2019–2020 was "well below average" due to low fuel levels and fire activity in unpopulated parts of Northern Australia, but that "Despite low fire activity overall, vast forest fires occurred in southeast Australia from southeast Queensland to Kangaroo Island."

Following the devastating 2019–20 bushfires in Australia, authorities were urged to prepare early for the 2020–21 Australian bushfire season. The bushfire outlook for July to September 2020 was predicting a normal fire potential in Queensland with a good grass growth in many areas giving an increased risk of grass fires, an above normal season in the Kimberley region of Western Australia as a result of good rains from tropical cyclones, a normal but earlier season in the Northern Territory, an above normal season on the south coast of New South Wales and normal seasons elsewhere.

References

  1. "Natural Hazards". Archived from the original on 11 February 2009. Retrieved 2008-12-13.

Coordinates: 34°48′35″S138°39′12″E / 34.809681°S 138.65334°E / -34.809681; 138.65334