Major Bushfire Records and Hotspots By Lily And Gen
Our enquiry question: • What are the most popular states for major bushfires from 1983 – 2013, and what causes the fires in those states?
What is a bushfire? • A bushfire is a fire in scrub or a forest, they usually spread rapidly. An example of this is the Margret River bushfire in 2011. It was a devastating fire that killed a lot of native animals and destroyed many homes and valuables.
Here are our results… We found out Western Australia, South Australia and New South Wales had the most major bushfires in Australia from 1983 – 2013. It really surprised us because QLD was filled with bushfires in the last 12 hours when we looked at the map. They just weren’t major.
What causes the bushfires? There is a variety of things that you have to consider as to what causes the major bushfires. Some popular causes for bushfires are: • People deliberately lighting the fires • When controlled burns burn out of control • Very hot weather • Surrounding bushlands overheating • Lightening strikes • Falling power lines • Petrol spills • Arson (when you set fire to buildings, wildlife areas and vehicles)