Facing the furnace
The day that changed everything for photojournalist Matthew Abbott was 31 December 2019. It was New Year’s Eve and he was on the south coast of New South Wales, Australia, spending time with his family. It was very hot, very dry, the forecast was for strong winds. In the morning, Matthew left his family at the beach and drove towards a towering smoke plume raging in from the west. As he positioned himself insaying,“Hey Matt, can you shoot the Australian bushfires for us today?”’ Nearly half the images from that day comprise his Australia’s Bushfire Crisis, Spot News, Stories, 2nd Prize at the 2020 World Press Photo contest.
