Warning Australian cities not immune to LA-style fires
Bushfires weren’t on Bob Sudharshan Ratnarajah’s mind as he bought a suburban home in Sydney’s northwest.
The Sri Lankan-born Sydney native grew up around Parramatta before moving to West Pymble on the outskirts of the city to raise a family.
Mr. Sudharshan was fascinated by the forest area and, like many suburbanites, saw forest fires as an event that only occurred in rural and regional areas.
Until a fire broke out not far from his house.
“It has gone from someone else’s problem to our problem because it is now affecting cities,” he told AAP.
Australia has already experienced urban fires such as the Canberra disaster in 2003, which killed four people and destroyed more than 500 properties.
But the country has yet to experience a disaster of the same magnitude as the Los Angeles fires that killed 31 people and destroyed more than 18,000 buildings in January 2025.
A comprehensive report by Climate Action Emergency Leaders and the Climate Council suggests Australia’s southern cities – Sydney, Melbourne, Canberra, Adelaide, Perth and Hobart – share some of the characteristics behind the Los Angeles fire.
Comparable conditions include steep slopes, proximity to bush and a tendency to extremely dry periods and strong winds.
Los Angeles’ winter wildfires owed much of their impact to naturally occurring extreme winds in Santa Ana. human-caused climate change It also contributes to the hot, dry conditions that make them so destructive.
Global warming is also increasing bushfire risks in Australia, including Adelaide and Perth, which share Los Angeles’ Mediterranean climate.
These cities experience rising temperatures, less winter precipitation, and more “whiplash” between heavy rain and drought, causing vegetation to grow and dry out.
Climate change is also lengthening the fire season and leading to more challenging conditions for frontline crews.
Also similar to Los Angeles, Australia’s city limits extend into bush and grassland.
According to the report, up to 6.9 million Australians are currently thought to live in fire danger areas on urban fringes; This is an increase of more than 65 percent since 2000.
During the Black Summer of 2019-20, a fire broke out in Turramurra, worryingly close to Mr Sudharshan’s neighbourhood.
“You can imagine having all your savings on your home with a mortgage, ‘is this going to happen?’ “There is such a fear.”
Fire crews managed to contain the blaze before homes were lost, but Mr Sudharshan fears the next incident could be worse.
He has been involved in efforts by local councils to boost resilience but wants more to be done at all levels of government to curb climate change and prepare for future disasters, including in the outer suburbs where newcomers may not be alert to bushfire risks.
Former Tasmanian Fire Chief Mike Brown said Australian cities were at risk from very hot, dry winds blowing from sun-baked interiors.
Although not as strong as California’s Santa Ana winds, these weather conditions are still dangerous.
“When we have north-west wind systems, we deliver that warm air to cities like Sydney, Melbourne and Hobart,” ELCA member Mr Brown told AAP.
Fires had already destroyed 20 homes on his hometown’s east coast this summer.
Unusually strong winds created difficult conditions for the crew, he said.
“Wind is probably the most important weather parameter in fire behavior,” he said.
“The wind dries the fuels. It also pushes the flames and preheats the fuels in front of it.”
High winds may also cause planes used to fight fires to land.
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