A series of major

bushfires A wildfire, forest fire, bushfire, wildland fire or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled and unpredictable fire in an area of combustible vegetation. Depending on the type of vegetation present, a wildfire may be more specifically identif ...

occurred between 26 January and 10 March 1926 in the state of

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

. A total of 60 people were killed with 700 injured, and 1000 buildings and 390,000 ha were destroyed across the south-east of the state. On 14 February, later referred to as Black Sunday, bushfires swept across

Gippsland Gippsland is a rural region that makes up the southeastern part of Victoria, Australia, mostly comprising the coastal plains to the rainward (southern) side of the Victorian Alps (the southernmost section of the Great Dividing Range). It covers ...

, the

Yarra Valley The Yarra Valley is the region surrounding the Yarra River in Victoria, Australia. The river originates approximately east of the Melbourne central business district and flows towards it and out into Port Phillip Bay. The name Yarra Valley ...

, the

Dandenong Ranges The Dandenong Ranges (commonly just The Dandenongs) are a set of low mountain ranges, rising to 633 metres at Mount Dandenong, approximately east of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. The ranges consist mostly of rolling hills, steeply weathere ...

and the Kinglake area. The fires had originated in forest areas on 26 January, but wind gusts of up to 97 km per hour led to the joining of the fire fronts on 14 February. In the Warburton area, 31 deaths were recorded including 14 at Wooley's Mill in Gilderoy, 6 at Big Pats Creek and 2 at

Powelltown Powelltown is a town in Victoria, Australia, 70 km east of Melbourne's central business district, located within the Shire of Yarra Ranges local government area. Powelltown recorded a population of 214 at the 2021 census. History The ...

. Other affected settlements included

Noojee Noojee is a town in the Gippsland region of Victoria, Australia, north of Warragul and east of Melbourne, in the Baw Baw local government area. At the 2016 census, Noojee and the surrounding area had a population of 157. The town benefits from ...

Erica Erica or ERICA may refer to: * Erica (given name) * ''Erica'' (plant), a flowering plant genus * Erica (chatbot), a service of Bank of America * ''Erica'' (video game), a 2019 FMV video game * ''Erica'' (spider), a jumping spider genus * E ...

and Kinglake, where St Mary's Church and Thompson's Hotel were amongst the buildings destroyed.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Victorian Bushfire Season

1925 Events January * January 1 ** The Syrian Federation is officially dissolved, the State of Aleppo and the State of Damascus having been replaced by the State of Syria. * January 3 – Benito Mussolini makes a pivotal speech in the Italia ...

1925 fires in Oceania 1925 in the environment 1926 fires in Oceania 1926 in the environment 1920s in Victoria (Australia) 1920s wildfires 1925 in Australia 1926 in Australia 1926 disasters in Australia 1925 disasters in Australia