Brief reprieve as bushfires ravaged the southern half of Western Australia
Easing weather conditions and the efforts of hundreds of firefighters have created some reprieve after bushfires ravaged the southern half of Western Australia over the weekend. A bushfire emergency warning is still in place for parts of Serpentine-Jarrahdale and Keysbrook. There have been no reports of any damage to homes, and authorities say fire crews are likely to bring the remaining blazes under control in coming days.
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00:00 More than a dozen water bombers have been deployed, with a large air tanker from New
00:08 South Wales today added to the firefighting arsenal, as areas south and southeast of Perth
00:15 burn.
00:17 Aerial footage shows just how close some blazes were to homes.
00:21 Authorities say many of the fires were sparked by lightning strikes late Friday and early
00:27 Saturday.
00:28 "Over the course of Saturday, high temperatures and really strong winds caused for some, at
00:34 one point over 100 bushfires were burning in the southern half of the state."
00:38 Easing weather conditions have given fire crews an opportunity to bring many under control,
00:43 with the clean-up beginning for some.
00:45 But a couple of major fires remain, with authorities attempting to keep these blazes contained
00:51 within the Serpentine National Park.
00:53 "There are no homes in there.
00:56 The risk is that the fire, under the influence of an easterly wind, can get out of that state
01:03 forest and into private property and that's what we're trying to prevent."
01:06 While this weekend's conditions have eased, authorities are issuing a stern warning for
01:11 the bushfire season.
01:12 "There's no doubt that we are having a change in climate and what we're seeing this year
01:17 is fires that are earlier, they will be more frequent.
01:20 We will see a long, hot and dry summer."
01:23 Western Australians are urged to make sure they're ready and safe for the summer ahead.
01:29 [BLANK_AUDIO]