Haze Veils Sydney as Wildfires Multiply

Wildfires have forced thousands of people from their homes in southeastern Australia, menacing the suburbs of Sydney and blanketing the city with a haze Wednesday.

Early today, firefighters in helicopters and light planes poured water on fires in Sydney’s southern suburbs after overnight blazes forced 1,000 more people to flee, bringing the total number of evacuees to nearly 4,000.

The number of fires jumped to 100 on Wednesday from about 70 on Christmas Day, fanned by winds up to 35 mph. Fire officials say many were caused by lightning, but they suspect seven were deliberately set.

The fires have destroyed homes, isolated towns and cut highways and rail links across New South Wales state and around Sydney, Australia’s biggest city. Ambulance crews have treated hundreds of firefighters and residents for respiratory problems.

There were no reports of death or serious injury.

About 5,000 firefighters are battling the flames, many of them for a fifth straight day.

The first blazes started in rural areas amid sweltering summer temperatures. Winds gusting up to 55 mph and 95-degree temperatures on Christmas Day left fire crews helpless to contain the flames.

“We have never seen anything like that before,” said the state fire chief, Phil Koperberg.

The blazes have destroyed about 150 homes and properties. Thousands of other properties have been threatened.

A grimy yellow haze hung over Sydney, the result of fires running along its western perimeter, some less than 15 miles away. Sandra Rogers said her home in one western suburb had survived but now stood in a blackened wasteland.

On the city’s southern fringe, the world’s second-oldest national park was being razed by a fire burning north along a six-mile front. Two villages on the northern edge of Royal National Park were under threat while two others had been evacuated.