This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/live/2020/jan/02/nsw-fires-live-news-victoria-bushfires-australia-near-south-coast-tourists-latest-updates-

The article has changed 24 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 13 Version 14
Australia fires live: NSW state of emergency declared as 17 missing in Victoria bushfires – latest Australia fires live: NSW state of emergency declared as 17 missing in Victoria bushfires – latest
(32 minutes later)
At least nine people have died since Christmas Day, and the RFS is urging people to evacuate the New South Wales south coast before dangerous conditions on the weekend. Follow the live news and latest updates todayAt least nine people have died since Christmas Day, and the RFS is urging people to evacuate the New South Wales south coast before dangerous conditions on the weekend. Follow the live news and latest updates today
An ADF liaison officer has been sent to the ACT in case things change suddenly. ACT chief minister Andrew Barr has cut his holiday short and is on his way back to the territory, given the warnings for Saturday.
There is an ADF liaison officer in every fire command centre in NSW and Victoria. He should be back tomorrow afternoon.
The state of alert for the ACT is because of the severe weather conditions which are going to hit the wider Canberra area. It hasn’t got as much attention, but South Australia is also still suffering.
The ACT government is not declaring a state of emergency just yet – but it is declaring a state of alert, which is the step beforehand. Many other roads remain closed including:
That’s because of the conditions the ACT will be facing on Saturday. So far the fires have not hit the ACT directly, but it is butting against the ACT and it wouldn’t take much for that to change. South of Nowra
The NSW state of emergency starts tomorrow and will last for a week. • Jerrawangala to Tomerong: Turpentine Road is closed
The main power that will come into play is the power authorities have to forcibly evacuate people. • Wandandian: Wandean Road is closed between the Princes Highway and Bollerang Road
So what can we take from that? • Nowra Hill to Charleyong: Braidwood Road/Nerriga Road is closed
Tomorrow is not going to be great, but Saturday is going to be even worse - potentially even worse than what we saw on New Year’s Eve. Around Braidwood
The Shoalhaven is an area of particular concern. • Braidwood to Nelligen: the Kings Highway is closed
But looking at the map, there is fire stretching from the Victorian border to just outside Sydney. That is a lot of area to cover and a lot of challenges for fire authorities as conditions get even worse. • Braidwood to Moruya: Araluen Road is closed
The Victorian fires are also worrying the NSW RFS. • Braidwood to Cooma: Cooma Road is closed
On how the evacuations are going today, Gladys Berejiklian says things are going as well as can be expected: In and around the Snowy Mountains
Where are fire authorties worried about? Pretty much everywhere at this point. • Tumut to Adaminaby: the Snowy Mountains Highway is closed
Shane Fitzsimmons: • Batlow to Tumbarumba: Batlow Road is closed
The RFS commissioner continues: • Jindabyne to Khancoban: Alpine Way is closed
Saturday sounds like absolute hell for everyone in the fire zone. A number of smaller local roads are also closed in the south coast and Snowy Mountains areas, and many roads crossing the NSW-Victorian border are also closed, including the Monaro Highway between Rockton and Cann River (Victoria).
Shane Fitzsimmons: Up-to-the-minute information about road closures is available at livetraffic.com.
Fire authorities are preparing for the worst case scenario on Saturday, after what happened on Tuesday. The Princes Highway remains open in the following locations:
Shane Fitzsimmons talks about Friday: • Between Tomerong and Nowra
NSW RFS commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons, who is continuing to show just absolute outstanding leadership, says the state of emergency is necessary. • Between Moruya and Narrabarba (south of Eden)
Gladys Berejiklian is holding a press conference – authorities will have the power to forcibly evacuate people, given the conditions which are predicted for Saturday. The Snowy Mountains Highway is open at Bega so anyone on the far south coast can travel to Canberra or Sydney via the Snowy Mountains Highway to Cooma, the Monaro Highway to Canberra and the Hume Highway.
Cool beans. Motorists are advised to allow plenty of extra travel time as traffic on the Snowy Mountains Highway is very heavy.
Motorists in these areas are advised to exercise extreme caution, follow the directions of emergency services and traffic crews and drive with headlights switched on due to smoke in the area.
We have a road closure update for you, for those in NSW:
The Transport Management Centre is currently advising (current as at 3.45pm):
The Princes Highway is now closed between Milton and Tomerong due to a bushfire.
• Motorists heading north from areas between Batemans Bay and Milton are advised to delay their trip, as the road is expected to remain closed for several hours due to fire activity.
• Motorists already on the highway are advised to stop in Milton or Ulladulla.
• There is very heavy northbound traffic on the Princes Highway heading towards Milton.
The Princes Highway is also closed in the following locations:
• Between Batemans Bay and Moruya
• Between Narrabarba (south of Eden) and Cann River (Victoria)
From Narrabarba, you can travel west on Imlay Road to the Monaro Highway to head north.
Josh Frydenberg said Scott Morrison will tour the Victorian fires in “the coming days”.
The treasurer has also defended the prime minister’s response so far:
On the cost of the disaster, Josh Frydenberg says it is too early to tell.