SYDNEY, Aug. 13 (Xinhua) -- Prolonged warm, dry conditions across the Australian State of Queensland (QLD) resulted in a harrowing weekend for fire and emergency Services, with hundreds of personnel working around the clock to contain 230 separate wildfires.
"The weekend was a clear sign the fire season is about four to six weeks ahead of schedule," Queensland's fire and emergency services minister Craig Crawford said on Monday.
"We are talking about conditions very different to what we would normally experience at this time of year -- conditions we haven't seen for some time, and conditions conducive to the rapid spread of fire."
"We have more fuel on the ground than we've seen in a long time and soil moisture is extremely low with no immediate rain forecast."
Although there were no fatalities over the weekend, a number of homes, sheds and cottages were destroyed along with a several vehicles.
Two firefighters also suffered injuries including minor burns and severe heat stress.
With such an ominous warning ahead of the hotter summer months, Crawford urged the public to be vigilant and ready to act.
"I'm asking residents to finalize their bushfire survival plans, including contingencies for pets and livestock should fire threaten their area," he said.
"The weekend was just an example of the conditions we can regularly expect to see in coming months, particularly in western areas such as the Ipswich, Somerset, Scenic Rim and Lockyer Valley regions."
