Blanketed in smoke

The bushfires in Victoria are why we are covered in smoke in Adelaide, yesterday and still continuing today. The Herald Sun reports that the Metropolitan Fire Service has received numerous triple-0 calls this morning from residents across Adelaide and as far north as the Barossa Valley reporting smoke in the area. The smoke is being pushed over the border from a bushfire burning near Edenhope, about 50km east of Naracoorte. 

The smoke is hanging thick over our backyard and smells really strong. It is a bit eerie actually. In particular now that we are living up in the Hills, an area with extremely high bush fire risk. We are checking in with CFS (Country Fire Service) everyday for announcements and conditions. Fires can threaten suddenly and without warning, so we all watch for signs of fire, especially smoke and flames, as it travels fast in the dry bush areas. We make sure we know the Fire Danger Rating in our area and we are aware of local conditions. After advice from Milla's school (we had a fire safety meeting yesterday night), we were adviced to have a Bushfire Survival Plan and kit ready at all times during summer. Now we have packed a box with spare clothes, blankets, water and some dried foods, in case we have to go on short notice. According to the other parents it happens a couple of times every summer that one has to evacuate on days with catastrophic fire warnings. Those days schools and everything closes, and we can come back when the fire risk lowers. The bushfire risk is very real up here. So to be safe we listen to local radio, check in with www.cfs.sa.gov.au daily, and have the Bushfire Information Hotline (1300 362 361) on the fridge.

Here are some pictures from the newspaper today. A smokey haze that is lingering.