Australian authorities urge hundreds to flee uncontained bushfire

A supplied image shows smoke from a bushfire near the town of Beaufort, west of Ballarat, Victoria, on Feb 22, 2024. - Reuters

SYDNEY: A bushfire in Australia's Victoria state raged out of control on Saturday (Feb 24), with authorities issuing a fresh evacuation alert at the highest danger rating for hundreds of residents in the state's west.

The emergency warning followed the downgrading on Saturday of another bushfire, sparked earlier this week, that has killed livestock, destroyed properties and forced more than 2,000 people to leave western towns and head to the city of Ballarat, 95km (59 miles) west of state capital Melbourne.