2 January 2020
The Australian state of New South Wales has declared a week-long state of emergency starting on Friday as bushfires continue to spread.
‘Tourist leave zones’ have been established in a vast part of the South Coast, from Batemans Bay to the border of Victoria.
The state of emergency started at 08:00 on Friday morning (21:00 GMT on Thursday) and will last for seven days.
It allows local authorities to carry out forced evacuations, road closures and anything else needed to keep residents, tourists and property safe.
According to the BBC, long lines of cars have clogged highways leading back towards Sydney and Canberra.
Supplies of fuel and essentials in shops are running low in some towns.
