It’s bad. I’ve lived in Sydney 21 years and there’s been nothing like this before. We were on the harbour this summer afternoon staring directly at the sun at 5pm - it was a barely visible red dot in the smoke haze - and ash was raining down on us.

The current drought is so tough on December 10 Sydney starts Level 2 water restrictions for all residents and businesses.

There’s an increasing sense among my friends of all political persuasions that we’re heading into this future faster than anyone anticipated - and that our government is asleep at the wheel.