THICK haze of smoke from bushfires raging in East Gippsland reached Swan Hill this week, blanketing the municipality the past two days.
It prompted a warning from Ambulance Victoria for people to take care as much of the state was blanketed by the smoke.
Acting director of emergency management Justin Dunlop said paramedics have seen a big increase in triple zero calls to people with breathing problems.
“Yesterday we saw a 51 per cent increase in the number of people reporting breathing problems, and we think that’s largely due to smoke,” Mr Dunlop said.
“Breathing problems calls increased from an average of 187 per day to 282 yesterday, with a spike in the evening.
Children and people with pre-existing health conditions are at greatest risk.
“The children, the elderly, people with asthma, emphysema and heart disease are at a greater risk of being affected by smoke,” Mr Dunlop said.
“If you have asthma or a lung condition and you develop symptoms such as shortness of breath, coughing or wheezing please follow your asthma action plan.
“If you are showing signs of a serious smoke inhalation injury you should be assessed immediately by a medical professional such as a paramedic or a GP.”
It is unclear if Swan Hill District Health has treated anyone for breathing problems as a result of the smoke.
“The smoke has caused severe issues across eastern parts of Victoria with visibility as low as 500 metres at the Albury Airport,” Bureau of Meteorology (BOM) forecaster Jonathan How said.
“In the south-eastern Melbourne suburbs, visibility is down as low as two kilometres which is particularly thick, and you can really feel and smell the smoke.”
Mr How said the persistent smoke haze had been caused by easterly winds pushing smoke from the ongoing bushfires in eastern Gippsland across central parts of the state.
“We saw a cloud band develop across Victoria resulting to 5mm-10mm in some places on Sunday and Monday,” he said.
“Unfortunately it’s (rainfall) not going to make much of an impact on these fires that need a lot more and widespread rainfall to make a difference.
“We advise all people to follow all advice from emergency services and keep up to date with weather warnings.”
Meanwhile, the heat returned to the Mallee last Friday before a cool change swept across the region at the weekend.
The temperature peaked at 40.2 degrees in Swan Hill on Friday, 36.1 and windy on Saturday before dropping to a brisk 18.3 degrees on Sunday.
The swift drop in temperature brought the first drops of rain for the year, with 1.8mm falling across Sunday and Monday in Swan Hill, barely enough to settle the dust.
People should guard against exposure to smoke by taking some simple precautions:
– Stay inside your house if possible; close all windows and doors
– If you use an air-conditioner switch it to “recycle” or “recirculate”
– Avoid exercise
– Ordinary paper dust masks and handkerchiefs won’t filter out fine particles from bushfire smoke – use a special P2 or N95 filter mask, which you can get at a hardware store. Be sure it fits properly and you don’t have any medical issues that would prevent use.
