Australia Wildfires Image ID : 20009182029151 Cattle graze in a field as smoke rises from burning fires on mountains near Moruya, Australia, Thursday, Jan. 9, 2020. The wildfires have destroyed 2,000 homes and continue to burn, threatening to flare up again as temperatures rise. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)

Australia’s wildfires continue to be as destructive as they were in December.

Hillsboro Globe Reporter – Sam Levy, News Reporter

The wildfires in Australia have spread around the country like a virus.

Australia Wildfires Smoke hangs in layers in the mountains near Bemboka Friday, Jan. 10, 2020. Thousands of people are fleeing their homes and helicopters are dropping supplies to towns at risk of wildfires as hot, windy conditions threaten already fire-ravaged southeastern Australian communities. The danger is centered on Australia’s most populous states, including coastal towns that lost homes in earlier fires. (AP Photo/Rick Rycroft)

Since December of 2019, there have been wildfires ravaging Australia. Australia is the world’s smallest continent, being only a bit smaller than the continental United States.November is the traditional wildfire/bushfire season in Australia.Call the Wildfire Season because the temperatures rises and the air loses its humidity.

Add these conditions with large amounts of dry wood, dead grasses and other fuels for the fire, creates the ideal environment for a fire to start.The out -of-control wildfires have continued from December to the present.

Currently, there are massive fires taking place all around the border edges of Australia, making it almost like a ring of fire. The amount of smoke from these fires has also been colossal, “The smoke is expected to make at least one full circuit around the globe, returning once again to the skies over Australia,” Colin Seftor and Rob Gutro of NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center have written. These fires, combined with the large amount of dry dead brush act as fuel for these infernos.

In this Dec. 21, 2019, photo provided by Helena Wong, fire approaches her home as she shelters inside. Wong and her partner Justin Kam built their home with quarter-inch thick reinforced glass, steel framing and rock surrounds to protect them from Australia’s notorious wildfires. But as they stayed home with their son and battled flames that soared as high as a 15-story building, they realized they were in mortal danger. (Helena Wong via AP)

This kind of fire is known as catastrophic on the Australian fire scale, “Catastrophic is as bad as it gets” New South Wales Rural Fire Services Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons had told reporters.

Currently, 24 people have been arrested on arson charges, however, there are an additional 159 people which police still want to take legal action against. Fifty-three suspects allegedly failed to comply with a total fire ban, and forty-seven allegedly had discarded a lit match or cigarette on the land. The disregard for the fire bans has exasperated the situation significantly.

These fires have already killed thousands of animals and an estimated 52 human fatalities.

It has been estimated that over 480 million has been affected by the smoke. The fires have caused untold amounts of damage to the continent. There are currently many fundraisers being done to try aid the efforts of the citizens of Australia.