Australia’s bushfires intensify its debate about climate change

THE FIRES eased over Christmas. But as 2020 neared, Australia’s inferno blazed anew. In the state of Victoria, thousands of people fled to the seashore on New Year’s Eve as bushfires ringed the coastal town of Mallacoota. Samuel McPaul, a volunteer firefighter, died earlier in neighbouring New South Wales when a “fire tornado”, as colleagues described it, overturned his vehicle. The federal government has called in military planes and ships to help evacuate people sheltering on beaches in both states. Experts say the fires are the most extensive in Australia’s history and are far from over. They have sparked heated debate about the impact of climate change and the government’s equivocal commitment to tackling it.