Fast-moving bushfires in southeast Australia trigger evacuations

KARACHI, Pakistan

Authorities in southeast Australia have issued evacuation orders as bushfires caused by lightning strikes earlier this week in western Melbourne continue to spread.

At least 100 residents of four small towns near the southwestern edge of Grampians National Park, about 300 kilometers (186 miles) west of Melbourne, were ordered on Thursday morning by Victorian emergency services to evacuate immediately as a nearby fire was getting out of control, the Austrian Broadcasting Corporation reported.

An early morning warning said there was a significant increase in fire activity overnight that caused a blaze along the national park's western edge to spread in multiple directions.

"Leaving immediately is the safest option, before conditions become too dangerous. Emergency services may not be able to help you if you decide to stay," it warned.

Residents of three more towns to the east of the fast-moving fire that ignited Monday have also been told that leaving now is the safest option.

According to incident controller Peter Western, the fire has increased in size to 7,000 hectares (17,297 acres) overnight despite mild conditions.

The fire has burnt through some private property at the western edge of the park, he said.

Communities near a separate fire in the national park's north have been told to monitor changing conditions and prepare to evacuate.

Western said that firefighters are working hard to contain the fires before a heatwave that is forecast to last from Saturday until Tuesday.