Australian Bushfires Lead to Delay of 50 Flights

New Delhi, January 15, 2020:

The Bushfires in Australia have led to the delay of as many as fifty flights in and out of the Melbourne airport on Wednesday.

The flights were delayed due to the dense smoke arising out of the bushfires, thereby reducing visibility. Reports said that the smoke drifting from bushfires in Victoria State’s East Gippsland region compelled the traffic controllers to close one of the airports runways, leading to the cancellation of 50 domestic flights, reported Xinhua news agency.

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According to reports, there are chances that flights will continue to be delayed due to the bushfires. The Meteorology department said that extensive smoke haze lingered across Victoria on Wednesday morning. The conditions are expected to improve on Thursday.

It may be mentioned that the bushfires in Australia started in September 2019. Since then, the blazes have destroyed more than 80,000 square kilometers, an area larger than Ireland or Panama, burning more than 2,000 houses.

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28 people have been killed so far in the bushfires. The latest victim has been reported to be David Moresi (69), a contracted firefighter who died while he was working to contain a fire in East Gippsland.

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