Canberra Fires Torching Namadgi National Park, Orroral Valley

Thick smoke covered the Orroral Valley region on January 31, aerial footage shows, as New South Wales and Australian Capital Territory officials declared bushfire emergencies for the states.

ABC Canberra reported the state of emergency declaration on January 31.

Michael Burke tweeted this video while aboard a Qantas Airlines flight passing over the ongoing Canberra fires. Footage from an airplane window shows bushfires burning in the rural area of the Namadgi National Park, where a state of emergency was declared for the first time since 2003.

Burke, who wrote that he was listening to Anna Vidot and Dan Bourchier on ABC Canberra Radio, thanked the firefighters who continue to battle the Australian bushfires.

Numerous fires had already been confirmed across the rural regions of NSW, and ACT Emergency Services Agency Emergency Controller Georgeina Whelan said that forecasts suggest that February 1 will be “our worst day.” Residents are encouraged to revisit their bushfire survival plans. Credit: Michael Burke via Storyful