Bushfires: Air of concern as Melbourne, and tennis stars, feel the strain

The Australian Open was a casualty of Melbourne’s smoke haze, with Dalila Jakupovic retiring from her qualifier after collapsing with a coughing fit.

Smoke haze from the bushfires blankets Melbourne yesterday, stopping tennis matches and prompting health warnings. Picture: AAP

The Australian Open was a casualty of Melbourne’s smoke haze on Tuesday, with Slovenia’s Dalila Jakupovic retiring mid-match from her qualifier after collapsing with a coughing fit.

The city’s air quality was the worst in the world on Monday night, with the Metropolitan Fire Brigade called out to more than 220 false alarms triggered by the smoke before the Environment Protection Authority Victoria’s AirWatch lifted the rating from “hazardous” to “very poor”.

Chief health officer Brett Sutton advised people to keep their houses closed up until the air quality was moderate.

“When you get in the hazardous range, anyone can develop symptoms, eye and throat and nose irritations,” he said.

There are 16 fires still burning in Victoria and 1.4 million hectares burnt, killing four men and destroying 353 homes and 548 other structures. Fires at Cann River and Tamboon in East Gippsland and at Abbeyard in the high country continue to be the most active, with watch-and-act alerts issued for all.

Senior forecaster for the Bureau of Meteorology Dean Stewart said southwest winds on Wednesday should start lifting the smoke haze, but would also bring sporadic thunderstorms.

Jakupovic, the world No 180, was leading her round-one Open qualifying match against Switzerland’s Stefanie Voegele when she collapsed to her knees with a coughing fit.

“I was really scared that I would collapse. That’s why I went on to the floor because I couldn’t walk anymore,” Jakupovic said.

“I don’t have asthma and never had breathing problems. I actually like heat.”

Jakupovic said it was “not fair" officials asked players to take the court in those conditions.

“It’s not healthy for us. I was surprised, I thought we would not be playing today but we don’t have much choice,” she said.

Tennis Australia said it would work with its medical team, the Bureau of Meteorology and EPA scientists when deciding whether it was healthy to play.

“This is a new experience for all of us in how we manage air quality so we have to listen to the experts,” chief executive Craig Tiley said.

“We have now real-time raw data that we can collect — we have installed measuring devices on-site for air quality.”

Tennis Australia chief operating officer Tom Larner said it would be treating any smoke stoppages in the same way as an extreme heat or rain delay: “We will stop if conditions become unsafe based on medical advice.”

At the Kooyong Classic, players and officials decided to stop play between Maria Sharapova and German Laura Siegemund at 5-5 in the second set because of the heavy smoke.

Royal Melbourne Hospital respiratory medicine head Lou Irving said smoke from the fire grounds would pick up additional pollutants as it drifted.

“Although it started as wood-fire smoke, it actually picks up other particles along the way and in Melbourne you can have diesel and pollens which attach to it — it’s a mixed bag,” Associate Professor Irving said. “And it’s potentially more irritable than pure wood fire smoke.”

He said people should take care in very poor air conditions even if they didn’t have existing medical conditions.

“Even young people should not be voluntarily exerting themselves to high levels of ventilation in the outdoors,” he said.

Additional reporting: AAP