Victoria is grappling with a series of major fires as record-breaking heatwave sweeps across southeastern Australia.
Australian authorities have issued emergency warnings and urged residents to evacuate and stay alert as two fires in Camperdown and Otways have reached the highest danger level, as per BBC.
Victoria has been placed under a catastrophic fire danger rating for the first time since the Black Summer bushfires.
The state is currently experiencing extreme heat with some areas reaching record temperatures including one location reaching 48.9C, creating even more challenging situation for firefighters.
In addition to Victoria, South Australia is also facing an extreme fire risk.
Considering this, health authorities have warned that the intense heat can be dangerous, especially for the elderly, children and people with existing health problems.
Extreme heat can lead to serious and even life-threatening health issues including heat exhaustion and heat stroke and also increase the risk of heart attacks or strokes.
The Australasian region has been experiencing stronger and more frequent heat events in recent decades and scientists said that human-driven climate change is making these conditions even more worse around the world.
Although fires occur naturally in Australia, human-driven climate changes make it easier for them to grow into larger and more dangerous blazes.
As global temperatures rise, scientists believed that such conditions that promote wildfires are expected to become more common in Australia.
