Natural disaster?

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Not happy news this installment. In fact, the furthest thing from it.

Whilst NSW was baking in 30-40 degree sunshine, and thousands of people were frolicking at the beach, thousands of hectares of Victoria were destroyed in the worst bushfires that Australia has ever seen. Bushfires are fairly common in Australia at this time of year - the scrub is dry and the intense heat does start flash fires. However, these are different. Worse. The current statistics (at 8pm on 9 Feb 2009) put the death toll at 131 - men, women and children. Old and young alike. All caught by suprise by the speed of the advancing wall of flame. So quick did it approach that people who knew it was coming and tried to pack a bag, were too late. There are stories of remains of families being found huddled together in burnt out houses; of entire communities being razed to the ground; and terrible, heart breaking stories of people searching for their loved ones. At the last count, and bearing in mind many places are still inaccessible to all apart from the rescue services, 750 homes have been wiped out



If these fires were naturally ignited, it would be one thing to deal with. But communities are coming to terms with the fact that some of these were deliberately lit.....arson. Murder. There are certain individuals in Australian society who think that starting fires is fun. Unfortunatley, this weekend's events show that it's not. It's deadly.

To contribute

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