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Australia is in mourning

This post is dedeicated to those who have lost their life

in the devastating bushfires in Victoria

At the time of posting 181 people were confirmed dead

with many more missing and countless more suffering in burns units in hospitals

Dozens missing, toll tipped to reach 300
DOZENS of people are missing, presumed dead, amid warnings the Victorian bushfire

toll could top 300, with up to 100 of the dead coming from one town.

as the official death toll continued to climb, it was reported looters were

stalking the blackened shells of the towns hit.

The toll climbed to 181 overnight but with dozens still missing it is expected to top 200

and there were even reports it could reach as high as 300.

Those missing were "people who the coroner believes are already deceased,

but are not yet identified,"

Victorian Premier John Brumby said. Marysville was being identified as a potential

"Ground Zero" for the firestorm, with authorities

fearing up to 100 of its population of 519 had died.

The force of the fires was likened to that of 500 atomic bombs.
"We had people banging on the sides of our tanker begging us to go back to houses

where they knew there were people trapped,

but we couldn't because if we had, we'd all be dead too," a firefighter

told The Australian about the moment the firestorm hit.

Some residents were being allowed back to survey the devastation of the fires,

but many were still banned from returning.

Whole towns were being treated as crime scenes as police hunt arsonists

believed responsible for at least some of the destruction.

Police said they could release a photograph an arsonist

suspected of setting a blaze in Gippsland.

More than 20 people had died in that region.

But as shattered residents take stock of what they have lost,

some have reported a sickening sight -

looters moving through gutted homes looking for items to steal.

The claim came from a man whose brother was killed at his Yarra Junction home.

He said thieves had tried to steal the only items spared from destruction.

"They're vultures," he said.

Other survivors reported battles with red tape to access desperately needed aid.

Gary Hughes, a writer for The Australian, said he had been denied help by Centrelink

unless he could produce identification.

"Losing everything means just that - everything,"

he wrote in an open letter to the Prime Minister.

"There are many like us who didn't have time to calmly pause to

collect wallets and purses as we fled our homes with wet towels

over our faces to avoid choking to death on toxic smoke and flaming embers."
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Survivors

Awful tales of loss continued to surface more than three days after the blazes,

but there were also uplifting accounts of survival.

In Murrindindi, firemen guided 19 people, including seven toddlers and babies,

to a river and hosed them under fire blankets as the desperate parents

begged to know: "Are we going to make it out of this?"

Andrew Collard, 30, and Brian Lawry, 46, stormed through the fire in their truck

and saved the group of eight families as flames engulfed them at a park.

They herded the families, all campers from Melbourne,

into the shallow water, parked their truck to protect them before driving cars

into the water and bundling the toddlers and babies inside, covering them in blankets.

"The fire was around us on four sides.

We were constantly having embers landing on us,

we were just surrounded by fire."

Jack Powell, 94, walked away unhurt after being covered with a wet blanket

as the blaze swept Strathewen.

Juliet Moore survived a fall from a police helicopter after unwinching herself to save her dog. Hundreds of friends and relatives continue to swamp websites

looking for loved ones who have not made contact in days.

http://www.news.com.au/perthnow/story/0,21598,25020467-948,00.html?referrer=email

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Photos from The Big Picture showing the devastation caused by the bush fires in Australia.

kindly borrowed from A Welsh View

If you are curious about the authenticity of this photo,

take a look at the video on this news site. [via]

kindly borrowed from A Welsh View

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click this link to see where the fires are still burning
Multimedia: Interactive bushfire map