Black Saturday Bushfires - Overall Statistics

Overall Statistics

It was estimated that the amount of energy released during the firestorm in the Kinglake-Marysville area was equivalent to the amount of energy that would be released by 1,500 Hiroshima-sized atomic bombs. However direct comparisons between explosives and fires in units of energy released is meaningless, as explosives release their energy almost instantly in a fast pulse, in contrast to a fire, which releases its energy far more slowly - over minutes, hours and days.

Beyond the casualty list detailed above, physical damage caused by the bushfires included:

• 450,000 ha (1,100,000 acres) burnt
• 7,562 people displaced
• Over 3,500 structures destroyed, including:
  • 2,029+ houses
  • 59 commercial properties (shops, pubs, service stations, golf clubs, etc.)
  • 12 community buildings (including 2 police stations, 3 schools, 3 churches, 1 fire station)
  • 399 machinery sheds, 363 hay sheds, 19 dairies, 26 woolsheds, 729 other farm buildings
• Agricultural and horticultural losses:
  • Over 11,800 head of livestock, consisting of 2,150 sheep, 1,207 cattle, and an unknown number of horses, goats, alpacas, poultry, and pigs
  • 25,600 tonnes (25,200 long tons; 28,200 short tons) of stored fodder and grain
  • 32,000 tonnes (31,000 long tons; 35,000 short tons) of hay and silage
  • 190 ha (470 acres) of standing crops
  • 62,000 ha (150,000 acres) of pasture
  • 735 ha (1,820 acres) of fruit trees, olives and vines
  • Over 10,000 kilometres (6,200 mi) of boundary and internal fencing destroyed or damaged
  • 7,000 ha (17,000 acres) of plantation timber
• 98,932 ha (244,470 acres) of parks damaged, 90 per cent of which was national park. It was claimed that 950 local parks, 70 national parks and reserves, and over 600 cultural sites and historic places were impacted or destroyed
• 3,921 ha (9,690 acres) of private bushland
• Over 55 businesses destroyed
• Electricity supply was disrupted to 60,000 residents
• Several mobile phone base stations and telephone exchanges damaged or destroyed