Most NSW homes destroyed in black summer bushfires were within 100 metres of vegetation

Key points

• Research has found that 94 per cent of the 2,475 homes lost in New South Wales during the 2019-20 black summer bushfires were less than 100 metres from flammable vegetation. The findings support the 100 metre buffer used in bushfire prone land maps.
• However, the research warns that homes further away burned on days of extreme fire danger, and that rising global temperatures may make the current rules less useful.
• The NSW rural fire service says homes in high risk areas should be built to higher standards, and it is reviewing its bushfire protection policy.