Suburbs of Australia's Capital Briefly Evacuated Due to Bushfires

Cailey Rizzo

Residents in the suburbs of Australia’s capital Canberra were briefly evacuated on Wednesday as a bushfire broke out near its airport.

Police closed roads and told people to avoid the suburbs while they fought the wildfires, according to Reuters. There have not been any reports of injury or damage.

Air quality in the capital city, as well as Sydney and Melbourne, has been listed among the worst in the world as the fires burn nearby. The sky is often clouded with smoke outside of the cities, particularly as a dust storm moves across the southern part of the country.

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Since their outbreak in September, the wildfires have killed at least 29 people and an estimated one billion animals. They have burned a total of about 27 million acres, an area larger than the country of Austria.

Firefighters had been battling the blazes during a period of rain and milder temperatures. But on Wednesday, high temperatures and winds returned. Temperatures in Victoria are predicted to exceed 104 degrees Fahrenheit on Thursday.

Some Australians are stepping up with courageous acts during the fires, even the non-humans. A six-year-old Kelpie-Border Collie cross named Patsy saved a flock of sheep as bushfires approached her town of Corryong in Victoria.

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Many people have asked for the original video of Patsy to be put up, so here it is....when I stood in this burnt black paddock after the fire ripped through our family farm in Corryong, all I wanted to do was show our friends and family that we were ok, that we were still here, and that even in all the devastation we still had so much to be grateful for. So many others have lost quite literally everything they have. I never dreamed that these 20 seconds of Patsy in a paddock would spread across the world, and that me posting pictures of a little black and white dog would become my way to help my hometown recover from the worst fires in living memory. It’s funny how life works sometimes... These fires are not over. Not even close to being over. They will burn for weeks, months even, and communities all over Australia are going to be hit just like Corryong has been. Our fire season here isn’t even half way through, and it seems like nowhere is safe. It’s easy to feel helpless. But, it’s also easy to help. Make a donation to bushfire relief, no matter how small it is, trust me it will be appreciated. Every little bit helps!

A post shared by Patsy The Wonderdog (@patsythecorryongwonderdog) on Jan 8, 2020 at 4:11am PST

On the morning of New Year’s Eve, fires began licking at the edges of Patsy’s territory. Along with her owner, Patsy went out into the fields to herd up her flock of sheep and bring them to safety. She sat alongside her owner as the fire approached and waited until it was close enough that he could fight it with a water pump. “Cool as a cucumber,” her owner wrote on Instagram.

Since her heroic deeds, Patsy has amassed more than 11,000 followers on Instagram.

Not all of Australia has been affected by the fires. For those who are planning to to visit, check out Travel + Leisure’s guide to traveling in Australia during the bushfires and helping out while you're there.