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Over 1 billion animals killed as Australia's bushfires rage on

Thursday, January 09, 2020 at 12:15 PM by Nurudeen Lawal

- The raging bushfires in Australia have killed over one billion animals

- About 25 people have also lost their lives to the raging fire with thousands of homes and properties destroyed

- The volumes of carbon dioxide generated by the bushfires have started affecting the quality of the air as medical experts warned of new health threats

The raging bushfires in Australia have killed over one billion animals, a figure which doubles experts' projection of 500 million, Daily Mail reports.

At least 25 people have also lost their lives to the raging fire with thousands of homes and properties destroyed and millions of hectares of land burned.

A statement by WF-Australia CEO Dermot O'Gorman said that the bushfires were not caused by climate change, saying Australia is a land of bushfires.

Over 1 billion animals killed as Australia's bushfires rage on — Firefighters battle bush fires in New South Wales, Australia. Credit: Getty Images
Source: Getty Images

O'Gorman, however, noted that climate change made the bushfires worse, adding that the current "mega-fires are not normal".

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The volumes of carbon dioxide generated by the bushfires have started affecting the quality of the air as the Australian Medical Association warned of new health threats.

The medical association said the polluted air may start causing serious illness among the people.

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Earlier, Legit.ng reported the raging Australian bushfires destroyed more than three million hectares in New South Wales, a southeastern state in the country.

A professor of Ecology at the University of Sydney, Chris Dickman, earlier estimated that 480 million animals, including birds and reptiles, lost their lives to the bush fires in the state.

The bush fires, which reportedly started in November 2019, had also burnt through the best koala habitat in the state killing over 2,000 of the animals.