20131019

Firefighters battle

Firefighters battle 100 wildfires across Australian state: Flames so intense it is unknown how many homes have been destroyed

  • New South Wales bushfires thought to be worst in a decade after more than 100 blazes break out across the state
  • Firefighters are still battling to control the flames which currently surround Sydney on three flanks
  • Dozens of families forced to leave their homes, and it is thought hundreds might have been destroyed
PUBLISHED: 16:15 GMT, 17 October 2013 | UPDATED: 23:45 GMT, 17 October 2013
Nearly 100 wildfires have been burning out of control across Australia's most populous state today. 
Several homes are believed to have been destroyed in the fires across New South Wales. 
Exact numbers are not known because conditions are too intense for firefighters to reach the hardest-hit areas, said Rural Fire Service spokesman Matt Sun. 

Red dawn: Sydney Harbour Bridge and North Sydney CBD shrouded in smoke haze as bushfires rage in the western Sydney suburbs of Springwood, Winmalee and Lithgow
Red dawn: Sydney Harbour Bridge and North Sydney CBD shrouded in smoke haze as bushfires rage in the western Sydney suburbs of Springwood, Winmalee and Lithgow
Rural Fire Service volunteers retreat after unsuccessfully trying to save a house from a bushfire at Dragan, north of Lithgow
Rural Fire Service volunteers retreat after unsuccessfully trying to save a house from a bushfire at Dragan, north of Lithgow
Swallowing of a city: The smoke from the bushfires west of Sydney rolls in over the harbour ready to cover it in darkness
Swallowing of a city: The smoke from the bushfires west of Sydney rolls in over the harbour ready to cover it in darkness
Game over: The sky darkens over the Ryobi cup cricket match between South Australian Redbacks and the Western Australia Warriors at Drummoyne Oval in Sydney
Game over: The sky darkens over the Ryobi cup cricket match between South Australian Redbacks and the Western Australia Warriors at Drummoyne Oval in Sydney
There have been no reports of injuries or deaths. 
Unseasonably, hot temperatures and strong winds have been fanning the flames across the parched landscape. 
 
    Smoke from the fires blocked the sun over downtown Sydney, casting an eerie, orange haze across 
    the city.
    A cool front swept through the region as darkness fell bringing temperatures down.
    Several homes are believed to have been destroyed in the fires across New South Wales
    Let the Flames Begin: Several homes are believed to have been destroyed in the fires across New South Wales
    No escape: Sydney is surrounded on three flanks by ravaging bushfires which has seen dozens of families lose their homes
    No escape: Sydney is surrounded on three flanks by ravaging bushfires which has seen dozens of families lose their homes
    Firefighters battling flames in Dragan but fires are so intense it is not known how many homes have been destroyed
    Firefighters battling flames in Dragan but fires are so intense it is not known how many homes have been destroyed
    Resident Sean Butler who fought the fire with five other residents at the historic township Newnes Junction
    All in this together: Resident Sean Butler who fought the fire with five other residents at the historic township Newnes Junction
    Newnes Junction, north of Lithgow, was ravaged by the flames which have been burning out of control today
    Burned out: The area surrounding Newnes Junction, located on the border of Newnes State forest, west of Sydney, was ravaged by the flames
    at