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Photos: Raging bushfires are leaving Sydney shrouded in smoke

Sydney’s day of reckoning.
Sydney’s day of reckoning.
Image: Getty Images/Cassie Trotter
By
Roberto A. Ferdman
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Billows of smoke have engulfed almost the entirety of Sydney’s skyline, while hundreds of firefighters are trying to tame to the worst bushfires suffered by the city in over a decade.

Compounding the already severe problem are winds of up to 50 miles per hour (80 km per hour) and temperatures of nearly 90 °F (32 °C). More than 600 hectares (1480 acres) have already been scorched, and local authorities fear home losses could creep into the thousands. “If we come out of this day without losing hundreds of homes we’ll be very lucky,” Rural Fire Service deputy commissioner Rob Rogers told ABC Radio.

Of the over 60 fires still burning, 20 still remain uncontained. Sydney, at present, is shrouded in smoke and ashes. Here’s what the city’s skyline looks like.

Bushfires raging in the western Sydney suburbs of Springwood, Winmalee and Lithgow have shrouded the city in smoke.
Bushfires raging in the western Sydney suburbs of Springwood, Winmalee and Lithgow have shrouded the city in smoke.
Image: Getty Images/Brendan Thorne
Sydney in Smoke
Hundreds of firefighters have been deployed to stop the fires in both Sydney’s north and south, but the smog persists.
Image: Getty Images/Brett Hemmings
From certain perspectives, visibility is virtually non-existent.
From certain perspectives, visibility is virtually non-existent.
Image: Getty Images/Brett Hemmings
While from others, a blackened, dense cloud of smoke floats above.
While from others, a blackened, dense cloud of smoke floats above.
Image: Getty Imates/Brett Hemmings
The build-up is so dense in some cases that the otherwise black night sky is painted in grey.
The build-up is so dense in some cases that the otherwise black night sky is painted in grey.
Image: Getty Images/Mark Metcalfe
Sydney in Smoke
With no certain timetable for how long it will take firefighters to stop the fires, the city and surrounding suburbs may have to endure the smog for days, if not weeks.
Image: Getty Images/Mark Metcalfe