Malaysia should offer our firefighters’ help in the Australian bushfire crisis, which will be in the spirit of good neighbourliness.

Australia is facing an unprecedented bushfire crisis, which is reported to be entering a dangerous new phase with high temperatures and strong winds set to exacerbate the already devastating fire conditions across the country.

There are fears a number of still-raging blazes could merge to create “monster infernos” in Victoria and New South Wales.

Emergency warnings are in place in Victoria and New South Wales, with scorching temperatures and unpredictable winds arriving, fanning hundreds of fires that continue to burn across large parts of Australia’s east.

Thousands of firefighters have been deployed but there are fears that major blazes burning could spread into untouched regions.

For the first time in Australian history, the Australian Prime Minister has announced the deployment of 3000 defence force reservists to assist with the bushfire crisis.

HMAS Adelaide is also setting sail from Sydney to assist with bushfire evacuations in southern New South Wales and also Victoria.

Since September, the fires in Australia have killed at least 23 people.

Dozens of people are missing and some 1,500 homes have already been lost this fire season.

(Media Statement by DAP MP for Iskandar Puteri Lim Kit Siang in Kota Kinabalu on Sunday, 5th January 2020)