As many of you are probably aware, wildfires in the Australian States of Victoria, New South Wales, and South Australia have killed some 170 people and completely destroyed numerous rural towns. Australian authorities now believe that arsonists were responsible for starting the fires, leading Prime Minister Kevin Rudd to comment that their actions are tantamount to mass murder.

The fires have affected some 3000 square miles, resulting in the worst natural disaster in Australian history.

From the BBC...

"The BBC's Nick Bryant, at a relief centre in the hamlet of Whittlesea near the devastated town of Kinglake, said people thought they had hours when in fact they only had minutes to escape the fast advancing flames.

Some described escaping down roads lined with burning trees, while their cars caught fire in the furnace-like heat.

One man said he siphoned off the water from his vehicle's radiator to try to save the life of a neighbour who had been set alight.

Kinglake resident Thomas Legrary described finding a neighbour with up to 50% burns on his body. They put him in the swimming pool to keep him cool.

Elsewhere in Kinglake, Jack Barber and his wife fled just ahead of the flames but found their escape route blocked by fallen power lines and trees.

They took shelter at a school, but that also caught fire. They then ran to an exposed cricket ground ringed by trees where they found five other people.

"All around us were 100ft (30m) flames ringing the oval and we ran where the wind wasn't. It was swirling all over the place. For three hours, we dodged the wind," Mr Barber said."