PERTH – More than 70 homes have been lost in a wildfire outside Australia's western city of Perth that is expected to continue burning for days.
The fire had razed more than 9,000 hectares (22,200 acres) of farm and woodland in hills east of Perth by early Wednesday, authorities said.
Western Australia state’s Fire and Emergency Services Commissioner Darren Klemm said the number of houses destroyed had jumped to 71 overnight, and conditions would remain difficult for firefighters with no rain forecast until Sunday.
The jump was from 59 houses late Tuesday. “We’re into day three of this fire today and it’s going to continue to be a challenging fire for us for at least the next three or four or five days,” Klemm said.