The wildfires in Australia have been raging since September and are only growing in intensity now that temperatures throughout the country are rising. According to wildlife experts, nearly a half-billion plants and animals have been lost to the devastation so far, including thousands of precious koala bears. As the smoke continues to drift further inland, new reports are surfacing about the impact the fires are having on air quality in towns and cities across the region. Among those most impacted are parents-to-be, who are reportedly giving birth in smoky delivery rooms.
On New Year's Eve, Dr. Steve Robson drove through a haze of brushfire smoke to deliver a baby in Canberra, Australia.
The obstetrician, who spoke with Buzzfeed News last week, described the scene as a "smoky hell," but pressed onward until reaching the hospital.
Once there, the air quality was hardly any better.
"I had the little spotlight that you use to look at things and it went through the smoke and we all reali[z]ed that in this birth suite, this baby was born into bushfire smoke," the doctor shared.
As you might imagine, new parents are growing anxious about the air quality they're exposing their children to -- both in utero and at first breath.
In a tweet on January 2, Robson described delivering a new baby in a "smoky theater," and declared it "the dawn of a new decade."
"Normally a time for optimism and hope," he continued. "Today, every single parent-to-be tells me they are fearful for their child's climate future."
During Robson's delivery, the child's parents were "really anxious," he shared, and told the doctor point-blank, "'Look, we're really worried about what the future will look like.'"
Just two days later, another mom about to undergo a cesarean expressed similar fears to the doctor.
"The mum could smell the smoke," he recalled. "She said, 'I don't feel so good about all of this' and I said 'To be honest I don't feel that good either.'"
Indeed, much of Australia is worried about the same thing.
On January 1, the city of Canberra experienced the worst air quality on record, with numbers reaching 23 times the hazardous level of 200, the Guardian reports. And it's not without consequence — at least one person has already died as a result of the poor air quality, and as the conditions continue to worsen, it's hard to say how many more will be affected.
Believe it or not, the smoke has even impacted some of the machines inside Canberra hospital. Medical staff reported that several MRI machines are unable to work because of it.
As air quality worsens, many Australians have been told to stay indoors. Public spaces, such as swimming pools, zoos, and parks, have been shut down. And breathing masks are in high demand as Australians worry about the potential risks of breathing in hazardous air.
But for the most vulnerable among them — the defenseless wildlife and newborn babies being born into a world that is actively burning — the risks are sadly even greater.
"Every single mother-to-be and every single dad-to-be I've seen today has expressed to me anxiety about what the future holds for the child they're carrying," Robson told Buzzfeed News.
On Monday, lower temperatures and long-awaited bouts of rain provided some relief for areas of the nation, but more is needed. So far, 25 human lives have been lost to the brushfires, though an accurate toll is somewhat difficult to make, as many remain missing. Nearly 2,000 homes have been destroyed, CBS This Morning reported.
