Tag Archives: oceania

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Over 460 WA homes, businesses without power in fire impacted areas

The number of homes destroyed by a monster blaze burning north-east of Perth has risen to 86, Western Australian Premier Mark McGowan has confirmed.

"It shows how devastating this bushfire has been for the people involved," Mr McGowan said.

He sent his thoughts to those who had lost homes and thanked the firefighters who continued to work on the ground in harsh conditions to control the fire.

READ MORE: Relief for Perth businesses announced after lockdown

Emergency WA said the number of homes and businesses without power in fire impacted areas has risen to 465.

Perth community, volunteers and businesses have rallied to support the number of people displaced, as home after home is threatened or destroyed by the monster blaze.

Coles Swan View, in east Perth, has partnered with the Rapid Relief Team to donate hundreds of bags worth of groceries to fire evacuation centres.

WA Fire and Emergency Services Commissioner, Darren Klemm, said conditions remained "incredibly challenging" with strong winds to continue into the night.

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Emergency warnings are still in place for many areas.

"We've still got some difficult conditions to get to tonight and into tomorrow," he said.

"We are expecting incredibly strong winds, stronger than we've had.

"There is no letting up here."

There's a possibility of rain tomorrow afternoon, but the Commissioner said they were not relying on it.

He said the loss of 86 properties now was an "absolutely devastating outcome for the owners of those homes."

"Our thoughts are with them," he said.

Everywhere east of Toodyay Road is now open, and residents can return from 4pm.

He said he was aware residents needed to get back in to check on livestock in the rural area.

Some fires have broken out on the northern flank of the fire, with retardant dropped over the past few days helping crews tackle them.

The Great Northern Highway is now open with speed restrictions in place, as the area west of the road has been downgraded to a Watch and Act.

Emergency WA said the cooler weather conditions means areas east of Reserve Road are no longer under immediate threat.

But people in or around the intersections of Clenton Road, O'Brien Road and Ewing Road have been warned there is still uncontained fire activity.

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A second bushfire which started in Perth's north-east late yesterday is being treated as suspicious.

There were fears overnight the fire, in Wilson Road in the eastern part of Bullsbrook, would merge with the nearby Wooroloo blaze.

Firefighters managed to contain and control the fire.

Anyone with information about the fire or dashcam footage is urged to contact Crime Stoppers.

READ MORE: Son's desperate dash through WA bushfire to help dad save home

A bushfire emergency warning is in place for Avon Valley National Park, Belhus, Brigadoon, Bullsbrook, Ellenbrook, Gidgegannup, The Vines, Upper Swan and Walyunga National Park in the shire of Mundaring and the City Of Swan.

WA Emergency said on their website: "Cooler weather conditions and progress of mopping up along containment lines means areas east of Reserve Road are no longer under immediate threat. People in or around the intersections of Clenton Road, O'Brien Road and Ewing Road need to be aware that there is still uncontained fire activity. The area east of Toodyay Road is expected to be open to the public from 4pm today. This will be confirmed in the community meeting currently underway.

"You are in danger and need to act immediately to survive. There is a threat to lives and homes," Emergency WA said.

A full list can be found on the Emergency WA website, on Facebook or by calling call 13DFES (13 33 37).

Firefighters battled windy conditions overnight, with more than 10,500 hectares burnt.

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Hundreds protest Myanmar coup with 'Hunger Games sign'

Hundreds of students and teachers took to Myanmar's streets on Friday to demand the military hand power back to elected politicians, as resistance to a coup swelled with demonstrations in several parts of the country, even in the tightly controlled capital.

In the largest rallies since the takeover, protesters at two universities in Yangon flashed a three-fingered salute, a sign of resistance borrowed from The Hunger Games movies, that they adopted from anti-government protesters in neighbouring Thailand.

They chanted "Long live Mother Suu" – a reference to ousted leader Aung San Suu Kyi, who has been detained, and "We don't want military dictatorship."

READ MORE: Myanmar blocks Facebook as resistance grows to coup

"We will never be together with them," lecturer Dr Nwe Thazin said of the military at a protest at the Yangon University of Education.

"We want that kind of government to collapse as soon as possible."

Resistance has been gathering steam since the military declared Monday that it would take power for one year – a shocking setback for the Southeast Asian country that had been making significant, if uneven progress, toward democracy after decades of military rule.

The opposition began with people banging pots and pans outside their windows in Yangon, the country's largest city, under the cover of darkness each evening to avoid being targeted.

But now people are beginning to take to the streets, including students and medical workers, some of whom are refusing to work.

READ MORE: People in Myanmar honk horns, bang on pots to protest coup

Students have been central to previous protest movements against military dictatorship.

The military has tried to quash the opposition with selective arrests and by blocking Facebook to prevent users from organising demonstrations.

Facebook is the primary tool for accessing information on the internet for most people in Myanmar, where traditional media is state-controlled or self-censored because of threats of legal action by the state.

The latest politician detained is Win Htein, a senior member of Suu Kyi's deposed National League for Democracy party (NLD)

Despite that pushback, on Friday, about 200 people joined the protest at the Yangon University of Education, and a similar number marched at the city's Dagon University, with many carrying papers printed with images of red ribbons – the symbol of the civil disobedience campaign that Suu Kyi's party has called for.

Leading that march were four students carrying the party's peacock-adorned red flag. At the student union, another held a sign saying, in English, "soldier back to barrack!"

"I believe we will have to lead this movement," a student at the protest Min Han Htet said.

"All the people, including the students, will have to bring down the military junta.

"We will have to make sure that juntas never appear again in the next generation."

READ MORE: Ousted Myanmar leader charged over 'illegally imported walkie-talkies'

The military's takeover on Monday began with the detention of senior government officials, including Suu Kyi, who was the country's de facto leader.

She is healthy and remains under house arrest at her official residence in the capital, Naypyitaw, party spokesman Kyi Toe said.

Win Htein, Suu Kyi's longtime confidant, meanwhile, was taken from his home in Yangon to Naypyitaw, on Friday, according to Kyi Toe.

The 79-year-old had publicly called for civil disobedience to oppose the coup.

He told Britain's BBC radio in a phone call early on Friday that he was being arrested for sedition, which carries a maximum penalty of life imprisonment.

There was also at least one demonstration on Friday in Naypyitaw which was purpose-built under the previous military government, has a heavy military presence and lacks the tradition of protest of the former capital, Yangon.

Medical staff at the city's biggest hospital gathered behind a big banner condemning the coup. Medical personnel have been at the forefront of the resistance.

Another protest was held in Myanmar's southern Tanintharyi Region, where about 50 chanting people marched, reported the online news agency Dawei Watch.

According to Myanmar's Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, at least 133 officials or lawmakers and 14 civil society activists were detained by the military in connection with its takeover, though some have already been released.

The NLD has said Suu Kyi and ousted President Win Myint are being held on minor charges unrelated to their official duties, seen by many as merely providing a legal veneer for the military to detain them.

The takeover has been criticised by US President Joe Biden and others internationally who pushed for the elected government to be restored.

"The Burmese military should relinquish power they have seized, release the advocates and activists and officials they have detained, lift the restrictions on telecommunications, and refrain from violence," Biden said Thursday at the US State Department in Washington, using Myanmar's former name.

The UN Security Council, in its first statement on the matter, "stressed the need to uphold democratic institutions and processes, refrain from violence, and fully respect human rights, fundamental freedoms and the rule of law."

While the US and others have described the military's actions as a coup, the Security Council's unanimous statement did not.

Protests against the coup were also held on Friday in India, Indonesia and South Korea, sometimes led by people from Myanmar.

The military seized power shortly before a new session of Parliament was to convene, accusing Suu Kyi's government of refusing to address allegations of voting irregularities in the election her party won in a landslide.

The state election commission has said it found not evidence of fraud.

The military assumed all state powers and has formed a new election commission to investigate the fraud allegations.

It has said it will hold a new election in a year and turn over power to the winner.

Myanmar was under military rule for five decades after a 1962 coup, and Suu Kyi's five years as leader had been its most democratic period, despite continued use of repressive colonial-era laws.

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UK to start hotel quarantine this month amid criticism of delay

Everyone arriving in the UK from countries identified as coronavirus hotspots will have to spend 10 days in hotel quarantine starting February 15 in a bid to stop new virus variants reaching the country, the government said on Friday.

But authorities are facing criticism for delays in implementing the policy, which was first announced in late January.

READ MORE: Diverse east London 'eye of the storm' as it grapples coronavirus

Under the plan, British citizens and residents returning from high-risk countries will have to quarantine in approved hotels near airports and sea ports, patrolled by security guards, and will be billed for their stay.

Most international travel is already banned under current restrictions to curb the spread of the virus, and arriving passengers must show a negative coronavirus test and self-isolate.

Enforcement of the quarantine has been uneven, however.

The UK says it has sought advice from Australia and New Zealand, where quarantine hotels have been used to contain COVID-19.

The main opposition Labour Party said it was "beyond comprehension" that the policy was only being introduced 50 days after a new, more transmissible strain of the virus from South Africa was first identified.

Labour borders spokesman Nick Thomas-Symonds said the government was doing "too little, too late."

Some hotel chains said they were in talks with the government about taking part, but Paul Charles, chief executive of travel consultancy The PC Agency, said others were concerned about their brand reputation being "tarnished" if they became associated with pandemic quarantines.

READ MORE: New trial looks at efficacy of mixing COVID vaccines

Meher Nawab, chief executive of the London Hotel Group, questioned whether there was enough time to set the system up safely.

"To set all the processes up you need virologists to come and visit the property, you need to set up hygiene protocols — that can't all be done overnight," he told the BBC.

"The ventilation system has to be looked at very closely. I'm not sure what (the government) has set out can be done in this time."

Britain has experienced Europe's worst coronavirus outbreak with more than 110,000 confirmed deaths.

It also has one of the world's fastest-moving vaccination campaigns.

So far, almost 10.5 million people, 20 per cent of all adults, have received the first of two doses of a vaccine.

The government aims to give a shot to 15 million people by February 15, including everyone over 70 and those with underlying health conditions.

The government announced on Friday that everyone in the UK over 50 should have received at least one dose by May, a vaccination schedule that meant local elections across England could be held as planned on May 6.

"Democracy should not be cancelled because of COVID," Constitution Minister Chloe Smith said.

READ MORE: Australia secures additional 10 million Pfizer vaccine doses

The government said in-person voting could be held safely despite the pandemic, but voters would have to bring their own pencils or pens to mark their ballots.