Smoke and fog envelops the Top End
DARWIN has woken to a morning as murky as many can remember as smoke, fog and mist envelops the Top End.
Northern Territory
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DARWIN has woken to a morning as murky as many can remember as smoke, fog and mist envelops the Top End.
Territorians have woken up to visibility as far as only three metres in some parts of the northern suburbs, with smoke alarms reportedly going off in Muoirhead due to thick smoke lingering from a fire at the Shoal Bay Waste Management Facility overnight.
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Grassfires overnight in the east of Darwin and a grassfire on Garramilla Bvd are also believed to have contributed to the foggy conditions, which extend to Dundee west of Darwin and Berry Springs in the south.
Josh Fisher from Bushfires NT told ABC Radio Darwin smoke from a string of fires around the Top End was being locked in by weather conditions.
“This week we’ve seen more milder fire conditions where the wind has really dropped off, so where fires have occurred that smoke hasn’t moved on and been pushed out of those low lying land areas,” he said.
“Coupled with conditions ripe for fog and mist, with some higher moisture and clear skies over night, that (has slowed the fog) to be locked in.”
Treasurer Nicole Manison this morning said the conditions were unprecedented.
“Smokiest I have ever seen a Darwin morning in my life,” she wrote on Facebook.
With foggy conditions reducing visibility on the roads across the Top End, Ms Manison urged Territorians to exercise caution behind the wheel.
“Take care this morning everyone please if you are on the roads or have some health issues,” she wrote.
Just minutes later, Ms Manison posted a picture to Facebook from her car, showing another cars’ headlights barely visible through the fog.
“Seriously. This is a car barely five metres away from me. Take care everyone on the roads and avoid driving if you can until this clears up,” Ms Manison wrote.
Thankfully, Ms Manison made it to her destination. And at 8am, when conditions had settled and fog and smoke had lifted, she seemed confident that all would be well in the Top End.
“Much better now. Enjoy the day everyone,” she posted with a picture of a sunny, if hazy, Darwin morning.
The Bureau of Meteorology Darwin is forecasting a top of 31-degrees for the city 33-degrees for the rural area.
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