How big are the fires burning in Australia? Graphic compares to North Island area.
The graphic below shows what the area of the fires in eastern Australia covers on the map of New Zealand and puts it into perspective for Kiwis.
Overlaid over the North Island, the area of the fires in Australia would cover well north of Auckland and spread south beyond Hamilton.It also spreads over a vast area of the Tasman Sea and the Pacific Ocean.
There are at least 3.6 million hectares of land burning in New South Wales alone at the moment.Towns in Victoria's East Gippsland have been hit by out-of-control bush fires and homes are expected to be lost, while 4000 people are sheltering on a beach.
