Former India cricketer Yuvraj Singh on Thursday reacted to bushfires, which are running rampant in Australia and said it is high time that some action is taken regarding the climate change.
"Australia has burnt more than 12million acres this season, they r not even halfway thr its peak fire season. Tragic news on #bushfiresAustralia 480 million animals have been lost. This is a culmination of climate change it's time v take some action. Prayers for all affected," Yuvraj tweeted.
The authorities in New South Wales have also declared a state of emergency and are planning to carry out evacuations from the fire-affected area.
The NSW Rural Fire Service has set up a tourist level zone from NSW coastal town of Batemans Bay down to the Victoria border and has urged all visitors to evacuate before Saturday, CNN reported.
Fires have wreaked havoc in parts of Austalia for months and aren't likely to stop anytime soon. Australia is still in the early months of summer and temperatures typically peak in January and February.
"The fire season still has a long time to run," Prime Minister Scott Morrison had said in a news conference.
Australia and New Zealand are slated to play the third Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground from January 3-7.
Cricket Australia's chief executive has said that the management would not be putting players' and public health at risk during the match.
"We won't be putting the players' health at risk, we won't be putting the health of match officials, our own people or fans at risk so that's something we will be monitoring consistently during the five days. It's a day-by-day proposition as those people affected by bushfires know better than I," ESPN Cricinfo quoted Roberts as saying.
The International Cricket Council's (ICC) guidelines state that play can be suspended when the air quality index (AQI) reaches 300 (the marker for a hazardous reading) and this number has been hit in Sydney during the summer.
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