[31] At its peak, air quality dropped to hazardous levels in all southern and eastern states,[32] and smoke had been moving upwards of 11,000 kilometres (6,800 mi) across the South Pacific Ocean, impacting weather conditions in other continents.

A decision by the New South Wales Government to cut funding to fire services based on budget estimates, as well as a holiday taken by Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison, during a period in which two volunteer firefighters died, and his perceived apathy towards the situation, resulted in controversy.

[62] Ecologists from The University of Sydney estimated 480 million mammals, birds, and reptiles were lost since September with concerns that entire species of plants and animals may have been wiped out by bushfire,[63][64] later expanded to more than a billion.

[65] In February 2020 it was reported that researchers from Charles Sturt University found that the deaths of nine smoky mice were from "severe lung disease" caused by smoke haze that contained PM2.5 particles coming from bushfires 50 kilometres away.

[68][69][70] NSW also experienced the longest continuously burning bushfire complex in Australia's history, having burnt more than 4 million hectares (9,900,000 acres), with 70-metre-high (230 ft) flames being reported.

[76][77] Due to safety concerns and significant public pressure, New Year's Eve fireworks displays were cancelled across New South Wales including highly popular events at Campbelltown, Liverpool, Parramatta, and across Sydney's Northern Beaches, and as well in the nation's capital of Canberra.

[91] In the Port Macquarie-Hastings area, the first fire was reported at Lindfield Park on 18 July 2019,[124] burning in dry peat swamp and threatened homes at Sovereign Hills and crossed the Pacific Highway at Sancrox.

[146] On 21 December, a catastrophic day, the escaped RFS Backburn impacted Mount Victoria, Blackheath, Bell, Clarence, Dargan and Bilpin, resulting in the destruction of dozens of homes.

As further crews arrived and worked to protect properties, a C-130 Air Tanker made several fire retardant drops directly over firefighters and houses, saving the rest of the suburb.

[citation needed] The fire moved south-east towards the populated areas of the Southern Highlands and impacted the townships of Balmoral, Buxton, Bargo, Couridjah and Tahmoor in far south-western Sydney.

[169] As temperatures were forecast to reach 41 °C (106 °F) on the South Coast, Premier Berejiklian declared a seven-day state of emergency on 2 January 2020 with effect from 9 am on the following day, including an unprecedented[170] 14,000-square-kilometre (5,400 sq mi) "tourist leave zone" from Nowra to the edge of Victoria's northern border.

[175] As of 5 January 2020[update], in the Bega Valley Shire, the Border fire that started in north-eastern Victoria was burning north into New South Wales towards the major town of Eden, and had impacted the settlements of Wonboyn and surrounding areas including Kiah, Lower Towamba and parts of Boydtown.

[253] By New Year's Day 2020 a crew of 200 firefighters brought the fire back to advice level without any loss of life or major property damage (a park ranger hut and hiking tracks were destroyed).

[333] On 5 January 2020, the Prime Minister announced the establishment of the National Bushfire Recovery Agency, funded initially with A$2 billion, under the control of former Australian Federal Police Commissioner, Andrew Colvin.

[347][348][349] Political figures from outside Australia including Donald Trump,[350] Cory Booker,[351] Hillary Clinton,[352] Al Gore,[352] Bernie Sanders,[352] Greta Thunberg,[353][354] and Elizabeth Warren[351] all publicly commented about the fires.

People in the entertainment industry such as Tina Arena,[351] Patricia Arquette,[355] Cody Rhodes, Cate Blanchett,[355] Russell Crowe,[356] Ellen DeGeneres,[357] Selena Gomez,[358] Halsey,[352] Nicole Kidman,[355] Lizzo,[358] Bette Midler,[352] Pink,[358] Margot Robbie,[355] Paul Stanley,[352] Jay Park,[359] Jonathan Van Ness,[358] Phoebe Waller-Bridge,[355] and Rosé[360][361] also made statements about the fires.

The team landed in RAAF Base Richmond in New South Wales on the same day, according to the Indonesian Embassy on 3 February 2020, the troops will be deployed on the Blue Mountains area.

[393] The women-led Teduray people of Maguindanao initiated a sacred rain-making ritual for Australian victims, calling on the fire goddess Frayag Sarif's intercession to bring rain to the country.

[413][414][415][416] Nonetheless, the political nature of many of the crisis and its associated issues has also resulted in the circulation of large amounts of disinformation regarding the causes of the fire activity, to the neglect of credible scientific research, expert opinion, and previous government inquiries.

"[417] The NSW Bushfire Inquiry report found that, while thunderstorm activity was comparable to a normal year, lightning strikes were more likely to start a fire due to hot, dry conditions.

[436] The Australian Academy of Science stated "The scientific evidence base shows that as the world warms due to human induced climate change, we experience an increase in the frequency and severity of extreme weather events.

[447] Conservative politicians and media primarily blamed a lack of prescribed burning and fire break management, although such assertion has subsequently been heavily criticised and disproven by scientific experts.

[413] Experts have also cast skepticism on the effectiveness of fuel reduction treatments, citing research that suggests that prescribed burning does little to stop bushfire and save property in south east Australia, with climate and weather conditions having primary influence.

[452][453][454] Of particular note, the damaging Currowan fire burnt through a large area of Morton National Park subject in 2017 to one of the largest prescribed burns ever successfully conducted in NSW.

[465] The Guardian reported "Bot and troll accounts are involved in a 'disinformation campaign' exaggerating the role of arson in Australia's bushfire disaster, social media analysis suggests...

The report cited a study by Queensland University of Technology senior lecturer on social network analysis Dr Timothy Graham, who examined content published on the #arsonemergency hashtag on Twitter.

[466] Giovanni Torre wrote for The Telegraph that "Australia's bushfire crisis has led to what appears to be a deliberate misinformation campaign started by climate-change deniers claiming arson is the primary cause of the ongoing fires... Social media accounts, including Donald Trump Jr's Twitter account, circulated the false claim that 183 people had been arrested for arson during the Australian fire crisis..."[467] In 2021, the Australian Press Council determined the news report that 183 arsonists had been arrested "was not misleading".

[471] The vice.com website wrote "Research conducted by the Queensland University of Technology showed that Twitter accounts with the characteristics of bots or trolls were spreading disinformation about the responsibility of arsonists and Greens.

However, as The Guardian reports "Despite the evidence, a claim persists that a major contributing factor of Australia's devastating fire season... is not climate change but a conspiracy by environmentalists to 'lock up' national parks and prevent hazard reduction activities such as prescribed burning and clearing of the forest floor".

[498] On 4 January, volunteer firefighter Paul Parker, from Nelligen, rose to fame after he stopped his firetruck next to a Channel 7 news crew, and used colourful language to denounce what he perceived as an inadequate response by Morrison.