Australia Gets Ready for a Dangerous Bushfire Season

Australia is preparing for a risky bushfire season this spring, with fire officials warning that nearly every state and territory could see dangerous fires. The warning comes as a weather pattern called El Niño is making large parts of the country hotter and drier than usual. Fire agencies say people need to get ready now, before fires have a chance to start.

The warning was published by the Australian and New Zealand Council for Fire and Emergency Services. It covers the three months starting in September, which is when spring begins in the Southern Hemisphere. Almost every part of Australia is listed as having a higher risk — the only exception is the Australian Capital Territory, the small region around the city of Canberra.

El Niño is a weather pattern that starts in the Pacific Ocean when ocean temperatures rise higher than normal. In Australia, El Niño usually means less rain in the east and higher temperatures in the south. Scientists say this year's El Niño could be one of the strongest ever recorded, making conditions especially worrying.

Dry soil and large amounts of dead plants and grass — called 'fuel loads' — are making the fire danger worse. Rob Webb, the chief executive of the fire council, said communities need to understand the risks in their own area and prepare early. He also reminded people that fires can happen even in places where the risk is rated as normal.

The Northern Territory is one of the areas most at risk. After a very wet season, lots of grass grew across the region. Now that grass is drying out, and experts say it could burn easily. Andrew Warton, the fire commissioner for the Northern Territory, said areas where grass had not burned for a year or more were the most dangerous spots.

Even though forecasters expect above-average rainfall in the Northern Territory this spring, the fire risk is still high. That is because the thick grass that grew after recent floods will dry out and burn no matter how much rain falls. Alex Vaughan of the Arid Lands Environment Centre said the landscape is 'a tinderbox ready to burn.' He also pointed to buffel grass — a plant brought in to help cattle farms — as making things worse, since it spreads widely and burns easily.

In New South Wales, some of the high-risk areas are places that were burned during the deadly 'Black Summer' fires of 2019 and 2020. Those fires killed 33 people and destroyed more than 3,000 homes. Since then, forests and grasslands have grown back, meaning there is now plenty of fuel for new fires.

Ben Millington, a deputy commissioner of the New South Wales Rural Fire Service, said the state had a warm winter with less rain than usual. He expects spring to bring more of the same dry, warm weather. He urged residents to clean their gutters, trim overhanging branches, and make a bushfire survival plan — especially people who have not been through a major fire since 2019.

Scientists say climate change is making the situation even more dangerous. David Bowman, a fire science professor at the University of Tasmania, explained that forests that regrew after the Black Summer fires are now full of growth that can dry out quickly. He warned that a strong heatwave could turn those landscapes into an extreme fire risk very fast.

Australia's fire warning comes after a summer of record heat and major wildfires in Europe. Belgium fought the largest wildfire in its history, while more than 320,000 people had to leave their homes in France and Spain. Scientists say these events are a sign of how climate change is increasing fire danger around the world.