KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 6 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The Australian government on Monday announced the establishment of a national bushfire recovery fund with an initial funding of A$2 billion.
Announcing this, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the recovery fund will help those affected by the deadly Australian bushfires, which have recorded more than 20 deaths, wiped out thousands of houses and businesses, and continue to bring devastation to many communities as the burning continue in more than six-million hectares of land across the country.
In a press conference aired by Australia’s Nine News (9news), he said the fund is aimed at helping the affected communities to get back on their feet.
“The Commonwealth is committing an additional $2b over the next two calendar years, starting right now, to support all of the efforts of a recovery right across the country.
“This is not just in the areas experiencing fires now,” he said in a press conference after a Cabinet meeting in Canberra.
Meanwhile, while cooler weather has brought some relief to Victoria and NSW, with showers and given firefighters some respite, the heat is expected to return during the week.
Temperatures are expected to remain warm with little chance of rain for the rest of the week.
Meanwhile, Xinhua reported that Australian army reservists have begun emergency operations in fire-hit towns.
A contingent of 3,000 Australian army reservists were deployed on Monday to assist fire crews and emergency workers with evacuations and disaster recovery efforts, following a horror weekend of wildfires across the country.
Although bushfires are a regular occurrence Down Under in the summer, the size and scale of this year’s wildfire has been unprecedented.
At least 25 people are dead, over 1,300 homes lost and around 6.3 million hectares of vegetation destroyed.
The Australian Defence Force (ADF) have received a Call-Out Order of Reservists for the first time in Australia’s history.
“The majority of Reservists who have been called out come from the Australian Army’s 2nd Division, 4 Brigade, 5 Brigade, 6 Brigade, 9 Brigade, 17 Sustainment Brigade and the broader ADF community,” according to the ADF.
Announcing on Saturday that the volunteer fighting force would be involved in assistance operations, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said “I have no doubt (the states) will have a long list of recovery tasks that they will be performing… rebuilding bridges, roads and other critical infrastructure and we will work hand in glove.”
Drawing on skills from professions such as engineering, medicine, logistics and transport, reservists will support state government agencies in New South Wales (NSW), Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia.
“The priority for those involved will be to assist in ensuring the safety of life, support the evacuation of affected people, provide assistance to communities and support-managed evacuation centers,” the ADF said.
Agriculture Minister Bridget McKenzie confirmed that army reservists will also be given the gruesome job of burying the thousands of livestock that have been killed by the bushfires.
According to the National Farmers’ Federation, it is estimated that around 100,000 sheep and cattle have been lost due to heat stress of smoke inhalation.
