Threat from 'devastating' South Australian bushfire downgraded

The threat from a fast-moving grass fire in South Australia (SA) has eased after thousands of hectares of land were burned.

In an update on Monday night, the Country Fire Service (CFS) said that the fire - the first significant bushfire in SA in 2021 - no longer posed a significant threat to the town of Lucindale approximately 350 kilometers southeast of Adelaide, the capital city of the state of SA.

Earlier on Monday, the fire reached the outskirts of the town, having already burned almost 17,000 hectares of land, devastating local farming and livestock infrastructure.

Nick McBride, the member of SA Parliament for the area, said that up to 2,000 sheep and 200 cattle had perished in the fire.

"These are huge losses for people who have lost stock in this area because they're mainly grazing businesses down this way," he told Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) radio on Tuesday morning.

More than forty fire trucks and six water bombers were deployed to fight the fire on Monday, which was a day of total fire bans across SA as temperatures approached 40 degrees Celsius in some areas.

Despite the threat being downgraded the CFS has warned residents of Lucindale to remain alert to changing conditions.

Shirley Solomon, a resident, said that the wind when the fire broke out was "so, so strong."

"It was quite frightening, and overall it's such a big loss to the community and surrounding areas," she told the ABC.

"It will take a long time for people to get through and over to the other side - it's devastating." (/Xinhua)

( With inputs from ANI )