Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan has sparked outrage with her blunt language in a bushfire warning, as parts of the state are ravaged by flames.
The Labor party leader fired a warning to Victorians on Boxing Day as residents in a town near Victoria’s Grampians National Park were advised to ‘shelter now’.
‘The message couldn’t be clearer: today’s a day of total fire ban across Victoria,’ Ms Allan wrote on X.
‘Don’t be a d***head. No fires to be lit.’
The premier, who assumed office after Dan Andrews stood down last year, added that Thursday’s conditions are ‘expected to be the worst since the 2019-20 Black Summer bushfire season’.
‘Make sure you stay up to date with the latest warnings via the VicEmergency app, website or your emergency broadcaster,’ she said.
‘Reconsider travel and if your plan is to leave – leave early.’
But her choice of language provoked outrage, with many people saying it was unbecoming of someone in such a high-profile public position.
‘I agree (with your message) but an interesting choice of words from a premier,’ wrote one.
‘Since when was it appropriate for the premier of a state to swear in public pronouncements?’ another asked.
A third accused her of using ‘unparliamentary, condescending language’.
‘Allan is not fit to be Primer,’ they added.
However, some were on the representative for Bendigo East’s side.
‘Love the language here, clear and to the point,’ wrote one.
Residents in Bornes Hill near the Grampian Mountains National Park were told early on Thursday morning that it is too late to leave and they must shelter in place as interstate firefighters continue to battle the flames.
They had earlier been ordered to leave on Wednesday, along with residents in Moyston and Pomonal.
It comes after high temperatures and windy conditions were expected to create an extreme fire risk in most parts of Victoria on Boxing Day – potentially the worst conditions since the 2019 Black Summer.
The mercury is set to reach the high 30s to 40s for much of the state and inland , with the central western Queensland town of Birdsville forecast for a 47C scorcher.
Victoria State Control Centre spokesman Luke Hegarty warned people in the Grampians, The Gurdies, Bullengarook, and Creswick to prepare their bushfire survival plans.
‘If you choose to leave these areas of elevated risk, go on the night of December 25, or no later than 10am on December 26, before the extreme fire danger conditions begin,’ he said.
Mr Narramore said the combination of strong winds, high temperatures and dry air made for dangerous fire activity.
‘Any fire that does get going or already is ongoing around the Grampians will likely be uncontrollable and uncontainable, leading to dangerous and erratic fire behaviour,’ he said.
Firefighters from multiple states have deployed to help their Victorian counterparts as crews work to secure containment lines.
The fire in the Grampians, caused by lightning strikes last week, has since grown rapidly to more than 50,000 hectares and could burn for weeks.
It remains unsafe for people to return to Bellfield, Halls Gap and surrounding areas.
Relief centres have been set up at Alexandra Oval Community Centre in Ararat and Grampians Community Health, or The Shacc, in Stawell.
In other incidents, crews contained a grassfire in Smithfield to Adelaide’s north on Christmas Day, as temperatures in the South n capital soared.
Regional areas in South are also expecting hot conditions on Boxing Day.
Adelaide is forecast to faced a peak of 36C after a predicted 37C on Christmas Day.
Total fire bans were declared for SA’s mid north, Riverland, Murraylands, upper southeast and lower southeast regions on Thursday with the fire risk considered extreme.
Multiple fires were also burning east of Perth and in northwest and southwest WA, and emergency services warned people to avoid the Laverton area and watch conditions in Bornholm in Albany.
On Wednesday there were also reports of blazes in central Victoria at Bullengarook and at The Gurdies in the state’s east.
Power provider AusNet warned customers that power cuts could be triggered to prevent bushfires from starting and outages could last longer to ensure safety.
As a cool change washes over Victoria on Thursday night, hot, dry and windy conditions will push into parts of central northeastern NSW, bringing extreme fire danger in that region on Friday.
In NSW hot, dry and windy conditions pose an extreme fire danger in the Greater Hunter, Greater Sydney, Northern Slopes and North Western regions.