Water tanker plane fighting Australia wildfires feared to have crashed
A water tanker plane fighting wildfires in Australia is feared to have crashed.
Rural Fire Service officials said helicopters were looking for the plane after contact was lost in the Snowy Monaro region of New South Wales.
The service said: “Local ground crews indicate the aircraft may have crashed.
“A number of helicopters are in the area carrying out a search.”
The NSW Rural Fire Service is investigating reports of a serious incident involving an aircraft in southern NSW this afternoon.Contact was lost with a Large Air Tanker which was working in the Snowy Monaro area. #nswrfs #nswfires pic.twitter.com/i6u1mlZsZ0
— NSW RFS (@NSWRFS) January 23, 2020
Meanwhile, Canberra Airport was closed on Thursday owing to nearby blazes, and residents south of Australia’s capital were told to seek shelter.
The fire started on Wednesday but strong winds and high temperatures caused conditions in Canberra to deteriorate.
Arrivals and departures are affected due to aviation firefighting operations.
Please check with your airline for up to date flight details.
Please follow ACT ESA to keep updated. https://t.co/V0uMtBAFJs
— Canberra Airport (@CanberraAirport) January 23, 2020
A second fire near the airport that started on Thursday morning is at the “watch and act” level.
“Arrivals and departures are affected due to aviation firefighting operations,” the airport authority said in a tweet.