Black Friday (1939)
The Black Friday fires of 13 January 1939, in Victoria, Australia, are considered one of the worst natural bushfires (wildfires) in the world, and certainly the single worst in Australian history as measured by land affected. Almost 20,000 km² (4,942,000 acres, 2,000,000 ha) of land was burnt, 71 people died, several towns were entirely destroyed and the Royal Commission that resulted from it led to major changes in forest management. Over 1,300 homes and 69 sawmills were burnt and a total of 3,700 buildings were destroyed. It was calculated that three quarters of the State of Victoria was directly or indirectly affected by the disaster. The Royal Commission into the fires was to note, "it appeared the whole State was alight on Friday, 13 January 1939".
Read more about Black Friday (1939): Conditions, Effects, Long-term Consequences, Comparison With Other Major Australian Bushfires
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