Nearly 3 billion Animals affected due to Australia bushfires: Study
Sydney: Nearly three billion animals were killed or displaced by Australia's unprecedented 2019-20 wildfires in "one of the worst wildlife disasters in modern history", according to a report released Tuesday.
The study by scientists from several Australian universities said the wildlife hit included 143 million mammals, 2.46 billion reptiles, 180 million birds, and 51 million frogs.
While the report did not say how many animals died because of the fires, the prospects for those that escaped the flames "were probably not great" due to a lack of food, shelter, and protection from predators, said Chris Dickman, one of its authors.
The fires ravaged more than 115,000 square kilometers (44,000 square miles) of drought-stricken bushland and forest across Australia in late 2019 and early 2020, killing more than 30 people and destroying thousands of homes.
It was the broadest and most prolonged bushfire season in modern Australian history, with scientists attributing the severity of the crisis to the impacts of climate change.
An earlier study in January estimated the fires had killed a billion animals in the hardest-hit eastern states of New South Wales and Victoria. But the survey released Tuesday was the first to cover fire zones across the continent, said lead scientist Lily van Eeden of the University of Sydney.
Results from the survey were still being processed, with a final report due to be released late next month, but the authors said the number of three billion animals affected was unlikely to change.
"The interim findings are shocking," said Dermot O'Gorman, CEO of the Australian branch of the World Wide Fund for Nature, which commissioned the report.
"It's hard to think of another event anywhere in the world in living memory that has killed or displaced that many animals," he said.
"This ranks as one of the worst wildlife disasters in modern history."
The plight of Australia's popular koalas during the fires garnered international media attention, with thousands of the tree-dwelling marsupials believed to have perished.
But a government report early this year cited 100 other threatened native plant and animal species that had lost more than half their habitat to the blazes, raising the prospect of far greater losses.
Scientists say global warming is lengthening Australia's summers and making them increasingly dangerous, with shorter winters making it more difficult to carry out bushfire prevention work.
The report released Tuesday was drawn up by scientists from the University of Sydney, University of New South Wales, University of Newcastle, Charles Sturt University, and conservation group BirdLife Australia.
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UAE issues fresh emergency alert, says situation currently safe
Dubai/Abu Dhabi: Residents and visitors across the United Arab Emirates received a fresh emergency alert on their mobile phones stating that the situation in the country is currently safe.
The message, issued by the Ministry of Interior (MOI), thanked people for their cooperation and reassured them that conditions were stable.
“Thank you for your cooperation. We reassure you that the situation is currently safe. You may resume your normal activities while continuing to remain cautious and take the necessary precautions, and to follow official instructions. (MOI),” the alert read.
The notification was sent in both Arabic and English through the country’s emergency alert system.
The advisory comes after earlier alerts warning of potential missile threats amid rising regional tensions. Authorities have urged the public to stay cautious and follow official guidance.
