2008–09 Australian bushfire season

The Australian bushfire season ran from late December 2008 to April/May 2009. Above average rainfalls in December, particularly in Victoria, delayed the start of the season, but by January 2009, conditions throughout South eastern Australia worsened with the onset of one of the region's worst heat waves. On 7 February, extreme bushfire conditions precipitated major bushfires throughout Victoria, involving several large fire complexes, which continued to burn across the state for around one month. 173 people lost their lives in these fires and 414 were injured. 3,500+ buildings were destroyed, including 2,029 houses, and 7,562 people displaced.

Late 2008 had relatively few bushfires. Victoria in particular experienced higher than average rainfall in December, decreasing the fire danger in many regions of the state. Initial observations in October 2008 predicted an above average fire potential across Australia's coastal regions and a below average potential in Central Australia, where drought has reduced the available fuel.

In late January and early February, the effects of the 2009 southeastern Australia heat wave increased temperatures across south-eastern Australia, particularly in Victoria and South Australia, where several locations broke all time temperature records. Various days of high wind speed, combined with the hot dry conditions, created extreme bushfire conditions between 25 January and 7 February 2009.