Fires continue to rage in Australia with over 100 dead already and the danger of more deaths in the coming days. What makes things even worse is that the fires are suspected of being caused by arson
Suspicions that the worst wildfires ever to strike Australia were deliberately set led police to declare crime scenes Monday in towns incinerated by blazes, while investigators moving into the charred landscape discovered more bodies. The death toll stood at 130.
The blazes have caused major chaos throughout the country and may continue to burn for many days to come.
Blazes have been burning for weeks in the southeastern state of Victoria but turned deadly Saturday when searing temperatures and wind blasts created a firestorm that swept across the region. A long-running drought in the south — the worst in a century — had left forests extra dry and Saturday’s fire conditions were said to be the worst ever in Australia.
The damage is also reportedly beyond imagining.
At Marysville, a winter tourism town that was home to about 800 people, up to 90 percent of buildings were in ruins, witnesses said. Police said two people died there.
Oddly the story has not gotten the level of coverage I would have expected given the range of the tragedy. Our prayers go out to all involved.