The Black Summer: Presented By: Aviral Upadhyay Section D, Roll No. 19D104

THE BLACK SUMMER
Presented By : Aviral Upadhyay

Image : nytimes.com Section D, Roll no. 19D104
The Unprecedented Australian Tragedy : What’s happened so far?
The 2019-20 Australian
bushfire began with
massive uncontrolled
fires in June ‘19.
46 Million acres of land

have been burnt so far,
that’s eight times the size https://globalnews.ca
of Belgium.
At least 34 people were

killed and 5,900
buildings got destroyed.
About 1 Billion animals https://www.vox.com

were engulfed by the
deadly fire, resulting in
enormous death toll and
possible extinction.
The flames have been

reportedly reached 70
metres high, taller than
Sydney Opera House. https://www.vox.com
TOTAL AREA BURNT IN NEW SOUTH WALES, AUSTRALIA
https://www.nytimes.com
A similar bushfire in 1974 burned 3.5

million hectares.
In 2003, as shown, another 2 million

hectares lost to fire.
However, the fire in 2019 has been the

worst by far, with 4.9 million hectares
already burnt. https://www.quora.com
https://amp.theguardian.com
WHAT IGNITED THE DISASTER?

The year 2019 turned
out to be the hottest
and driest for
Australia owing to the
global climate change.
Drought in hot regions, Australia
Drought, heat wave

and strong gusty wind
forces combined to
give rise to deadliest
fire ever.
Gusty Wind, Australia
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCC552Sd-3nyi_tk2BudLUzA
The smoke of bushfires

generates its own
weather sparking
thunderstorm with
lightning which create
even more wildfires.
AFFECTED AREAS SHOWN AS A COMBINATION OF HOT AND DRY REGIONS

INDIAN OCEAN DIPOLE (IOD) : the hidden devil
IOD is a big temperature https://globalnews.ca
gradient that affects the

Indian Ocean in three
phases, from the edge of
Africa to edge of Australia.
Neutral phase - evenly warm

surface water from one edge
to another.
Negative phase - Winds from

the east shift the warm
water towards Australia,
thus high evaporation
ensures high rainfall at its
edge.
Positive phase – Winds shift

the warm water towards
Africa, ensuring high rainfall
there instead. This phase is
responsible for the bushfire.
Heavy flood in Africa Due to the ongoing positive IOD phase
IMPACT AND CONSEQUENCES
Bushfire Smoke contains particulate Satellite image showing CO2 emission
airborne matter which caused
respiratory problems and deaths
due to asthma. The level of smoke in
some cities(NSW) crossed 20 times
the hazardous level.
https://globalnews.ca
Dust and ash has been found over

2000 km across the ocean, turning
glaciers in NZ brown, which may
speed up the melting.
350 million metric tons CO2,

equivalent to that released in 1 year
in Australia, has been produced,
which is a greenhouse gas, and will
ultimately worsen the climate
change.
DEATH OF 8000 KOALAS IN THE BUSHFIRE
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIzXayRP7-P0ANpq-nD-h5g
- A woman in Australia saved a badly wounded, crying koala from a bushfire in South
Wales.
- The koala was washed and wrapped before being taken to the Port Macquarie Koala
Hospital.
- The hospital issued a statement on its Facebook page saying it had made the decision to
put Lewis to sleep after his conditions deteriorated.
- His death spurred over 7000 people to donate to the hospital’s fundraising campaign
following the announcement
HEAVILY AFFECTED FAUNA: KANGAROO ISLAND, AUSTRALIA
LIGURIAN HONEYBEE
https://www.quora.com
PYGMY POSSOMS https://www.quora.com
https://www.quora.com GLOSSY BACK COCKATOOS BROWN BANDICOOTS https://www.quora.com

Ground zero, Sydney, village of 400 Mallacoota town, Victoria, bushfires left
inundated by fire for four days. several people marooned.
https://www.bbc.com https://www.bbc.com
Firenado whipped up outside perth, 25,000 hec. Within a 127 km perimetre burnt
burning 13,000 hec. and a petrol pump. in Adelaide hills.
ARCHAELOGICAL EFFECTS : SOME GOOD SOME BAD
The intense temperature

change of the fire has cracked
the granite rocks of 500 year
old rock art at Anaiwan, New
South Wales.
On first inspection of the

Budj Bim heritage area after
fires were down, People
found ancient channels and
ponds that were newly
visible.
In New South Wales, people

Anaiwan traditional owners inspect the
observed a boomerang
damage to the rock art. The large spalls –
carved by stone artefact after
shards of granite which have cracked in
the fires at new year’s eve.
the heat of the fire – can be seen on the
ground. https://www.nytimes.com
So, we had to fight back!
About 3,700 firefighters have been on

the ground at any one time, along with
3,000 army, navy and air force reservists
to help with search, rescue and clean-up.
A combination of aircraft and land based

equipment is being used, including
helicopters, fixed-wing aircraft and air-
tankers to firebomb water or drop
retardant onto fires.
“Heavy plant” equipment such as

bulldozers and excavators are in service
to move earth, clear areas of debris and
create “firebreaks” – gaps in vegetation
that slow the advance of flames.
SALUTE TO THOUSANDS OF VOLUNTEERS FIGHTING THE FLAMES
Volunteer firefighters Andrew O’Dawyer and Volunteers make up the majority of the
Geoffrey Keaton, died during the fight. firefighting crews
https://www.theverge.com
Firefighter Russell Scholes got his own home burnt while he was trying to help his
neighbours, on being informed that his home was burning, he told that he was defending
properties, and if they were on fire, he had to move to the next property.
CONTROLLED BURNING : A CONCEPT
“It is not burning because they burnt off ,it is burning

because they did not burn off.”
- Barnaby Joyce, National Party of Australia.
https://apnews.com
It involves deliberately staring fires under

controlled conditions to clear out low-lying
flammable material – sometimes called
“prescribed” or “hazard reduction burning”.
However, due to prolonged drought

conditions, the ability to complete hazard
reduction work is adversely affected.
An analysis by ABC News show that some

controlled burning targets in NSW and
Queensland have been met successfully.
PREVENTION IS BETTER THAN CURE
We may create a natural fire regime
to fight megafires beforehand. This
involves fires made out of season
referred to as “cold fires”. They burn
up leaves and old wood and create
breaks in the forest.
Agroforestry : Grazing animals help

remove “fuel” from the forest floor
and create natural breaks in
woodland.
More people managing the forests

with subsistence farming reduce the
chances and effect of megafires. Farm workers in Evora, Portugal,
tend to trees that are part of an
agroforestry system. https://theconversation.com
WHAT YOU CAN DO?
Fund the firefighters: You can donate to the volunteer teams on the fire service’s
site - https://www.rfs.nsw.gov.au/volunteer/support-your-local-brigade.
Start the recovery: Blaze Aid (https://blazeaid.com.au/) Red Cross (

https://www.redcross.org.au/campaigns/disaster-relief-and-recovery-donate) and Salvation Army (
https://www.salvationarmy.org.au/donate/make-a-donation/donate-online/?appeal=disasterappea
l
) are fundraising to provide aid, housing and more to fire victims. You can donate funds to their
volunteers.
Fight for the animals: Donate to the RSPCA (

https://www.rspcansw.org.au/bushfire-appeal/) in New South Wales to help with animal
rescues, evacuations, sheltering and aiding any injured animals in the aftermath.
Plan A Trip : According to travel specialist Pedro O’ Connor “It is an opportune time to
travel with purpose and get one’s hand dirty by volunteering and making a difference to
real people’s lives.” Generally, area around Western Australia are still safe to visit, and they
can be relived with our tourism dollars.
THANK YOU
https://theconversation.com
BIBLIOGRAPHY
Global News
Vox – Understand the News

https://www.vox.com
The New York Times

AsapSCIENCE-YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCC552Sd-3nyi_tk2BudLUzA
The Sun-YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIzXayRP7-P0ANpq-nD-h5g
The Verge
BBC News
https://www.bbc.com
Quora
https://www.quora.com
AP News
https://apnews.com
The Guardian
The Conversation
https://theconversation.com

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THE BLACK SUMMER

Presented By : Aviral Upadhyay

46 Million acres of land

At least 34 people were

About 1 Billion animals https://www.vox.com

The flames have been

A similar bushfire in 1974 burned 3.5

In 2003, as shown, another 2 million

However, the fire in 2019 has been the

WHAT IGNITED THE DISASTER?

Drought, heat wave

The smoke of bushfires

AFFECTED AREAS SHOWN AS A COMBINATION OF HOT AND DRY REGIONS

gradient that affects the

Neutral phase - evenly warm

Negative phase - Winds from

Positive phase – Winds shift

Dust and ash has been found over

350 million metric tons CO2,

PYGMY POSSOMS https://www.quora.com

https://www.quora.com GLOSSY BACK COCKATOOS BROWN BANDICOOTS https://www.quora.com

The intense temperature

On first inspection of the

In New South Wales, people

About 3,700 firefighters have been on

A combination of aircraft and land based

“Heavy plant” equipment such as

“It is not burning because they burnt off ,it is burning

It involves deliberately staring fires under

However, due to prolonged drought

An analysis by ABC News show that some

Agroforestry : Grazing animals help

More people managing the forests

Start the recovery: Blaze Aid (https://blazeaid.com.au/) Red Cross (

Fight for the animals: Donate to the RSPCA (

Vox – Understand the News

The New York Times

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