SYDNEY, Nov. 1 (Xinhua) -- Australian police have launched investigation over four bushfires in the Sunshine Coast region of Queensland over the past two weeks, as the cause is believed to be suspicious.
In a statement released on Tuesday, Queensland Police said that a fire at Beerwah was deliberately lit near Stokes Road around 10:30 a.m. local time on Sunday.
Another fire in the Beerwah - Landsborough area is under investigation as well, which broke out on Saturday near a forestry clearing on Dianella Road and Roys Road around 1 p.m. local time.
This rapidly advancing blaze caused police to issue an emergency declaration under the Public Safety Preservation Act later that night.
Officers are also investigating whether a grass fire was sparked on Sattler Road in Meridan Plains on Oct. 23 just before 9 p.m. local time, after an offender tried to gain entry to a business by cutting the locks to a fence.
In addition, a bushfire in Beerwah occurring on Oct. 21 is being treated as suspicious.
As Queensland is sweltering under unseasonal spring heat along with gusty winds, local communities have been receiving forecasts of high-to-extreme fire danger.
According to the latest fire update by the Queensland government, there are 76 active bushfires across the state as of 6:30 a.m. local time on Wednesday, with 58 structures damaged on Western Downs, and fire crews have fought 900 vegetation fires since Oct. 21.
"This emergency is far from over," Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk warned. ■
