A NZ Herald article.
The stage for Lake Ōhau Village’s devastating fires was set by a combination of severe La Nina-influenced winds, unusually high temperatures, and pastures left dry by the warmest winter on record, an expert says.
It falls against the backdrop of a warming climate predicted to raise the risk of severe fire weather by three-fold in some parts of New Zealand.
Up to 50 structures have been destroyed in the blaze at the idyllic lakeside Waitaki District town, which had been fanned by strong, northwest winds described as “absolutely horrendous” by locals.
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