Skipper Tim Paine calls Australia bushfire 'real eye-opener'; credits the 'real heroes'

As catastrophic blazes ripped through Australia's south-east on New Year's eve, Test team captain, Tim Paine lauded the firefighters and called them the 'real heroes' of the summer. Ahead of the third Test against New Zealand in the Trans Tansman Trophy which commences on January 3, Paine stated that the match could provide an opportunity to distract people and give them a bit of happiness. 

'A real eye-opener for us'

On the eve of the third Test, Paine said, "I think the way we sort of look at this, an opportunity to provide a distraction for people and a bit of happiness if we can, by playing a brand of cricket that- as we have touched on a lot - that Australians are proud of. Certainly, at times, it is important for us to look outside the bubble we live in as international cricketers. The events that are going on in the country at the moment, are a real eye-opener for us."

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Furthermore, he added, "We speak about one of our things as being humble and showing some humility, so our thoughts certainly go out to the people who have been affected. The fires have got worse, I think overnight and the firefighters, as we said, have been the real heroes of the summer, taking on some extreme risks and putting themselves in some pretty extraordinary situations. So we thank them on behalf of our team, and our wishes and thoughts are with people that are currently affected." 

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State of Emergency declared in Australia

Australian authorities on Thursday declared a state of emergency and forced evacuation of residents, tourists and closure of roads in the bushfire zones in the states of New South Wales and Victoria ahead of Saturday's forecast of "horrible" fire conditions due to the intensified heatwave. 

New South Wales government on Thursday declared a state of emergency for a week starting Friday which would mean forced evacuations and road closures for people in bushfire zones ahead of Saturday's forecast "horrible" fire conditions. Authorities have urged people to leave the impacted areas if they can as the Rural Fire Service department is expecting tough conditions over the weekend.

"So we're going to have a very long, difficult day of hot, dry winds, dominating out of the north, north-west before a southerly change emits. It is going to be a very dangerous day. It's going to be a very difficult day,'' Rural Fire Service Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons said.

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