Queen Elizabeth II sent a message to Governor-General the Honourable David Hurley AC DSC (Retd) about the devasting bushfires in Australia.

The Governor of New South Wales, Governor of Queensland, and Governor of Victoria also received the message for all Australians.

‘I have been deeply saddened to hear of the continued bushfires and their devastating impact across many parts of Australia.

My thanks go out to the emergency services, and those who put their own lives in danger to help communities in need.

Read the Queen’s Message on the Governor-General’s website – https://www.gg.gov.au/about-governor-generalmedia-and-speeches/message-her-majesty-queen-elizabeth-ii

From Kensington Palace

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge posted a message on their Twitter account @KensingtonRoyal on Friday, 3 January:

‘Our followers in Australia can find out the latest information on the fires by following the accounts on this list👇

A Twitter List by KensingtonRoyal

As the devastating fires continue our thoughts remain with those impacted and those working heroically to fight them.’

Our followers in Australia can find out the latest information on the fires by following the accounts on this list👇https://t.co/4fB5iGYSFr

As the devastating fires continue our thoughts remain with those impacted and those working heroically to fight them.

— Kensington Palace (@KensingtonRoyal) January 2, 2020

And on 4 January 2020:

We continue to be shocked and deeply saddened to hear about the wild fires that are destroying homes, livelihoods and wildlife across much of Australia.

Our thoughts and prayers are with all the people and communities who are affected by this devastating event”

We send our deepest condolences to the families and friends of those who have tragically lost their lives, and the brave firemen who continue to risk their own lives to save the lives of others”.

— The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge

“We send our deepest condolences to the families and friends of those who have tragically lost their lives, and the brave firemen who continue to risk their own lives to save the lives of others”.

— The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge

— Kensington Palace (@KensingtonRoyal) January 4, 2020

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex

Harry and Meghan also posted their support on Instagram, describing it as a ‘global crisis’.

Our thoughts and prayers are with those across Australia who are continuing to face the devastating fires that have been raging for months.

From areas we are personally connected to such as the communities and people we visited in New South Wales in 2018, to the fires in California and parts of Africa, we are struck by the increasingly overlapping presence of these environmental disasters, including of course the destruction of the Amazon which continues.

This global environmental crisis has now been described as Ecocide. It’s easy to feel helpless, but there’s always a way to help.

To find out how you can lend your support, please see the links below to help as we have.

https://fundraise.redcross.org.au/drr (@redcrossau)

https://www.rfs.nsw.gov.au/about-us/fundraising (@nswrfs)

https://www.cfa.vic.gov.au/about/supporting-cfa#donate-cfa

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Our thoughts and prayers are with those across Australia who are continuing to face the devastating fires that have been raging for months. From areas we are personally connected to such as the communities and people we visited in New South Wales in 2018, to the fires in California and parts of Africa, we are struck by the increasingly overlapping presence of these environmental disasters, including of course the destruction of the Amazon which continues. This global environmental crisis has now been described as Ecocide. It’s easy to feel helpless, but there’s always a way to help. To find out how you can lend your support, please see the links below to help as we have. https://fundraise.redcross.org.au/drr (@redcrossau) https://www.rfs.nsw.gov.au/about-us/fundraising (@nswrfs) https://www.cfa.vic.gov.au/about/supporting-cfa#donate-cfa Photo © @nswrfs / @dale_appleton / Jay Elai

A post shared by The Duke and Duchess of Sussex (@sussexroyal) on Jan 4, 2020 at 11:48am PST

Causes of the Bushfires

However, about 85% of the Australian bushfires were started by arsonists, or cigarette butts thrown out of car windows or lightning strikes, not ‘climate change’.

In 2005, Premier Bob Carr decided to lock up forests as National Parks, with little or no regular maintenance to reduce fuel loads, including hazard reduction burns during the winter months.

With no regular maintenance, the vegetation thickens, with weeds multiplying, as livestock were no longer allowed to graze, and an increase in feral animals such as wild dogs roaming the nearby countryside.

Reports claim that Greens policies refusing property owners to carry out hazard reductions during the winter months have also contributed to the recent inferno with thousands losing their homes.