To all you Aussies:

[vashti]

Are you all burning up with the fires, or what?

Your climate sounds pretty much exactly like where I live. We get a lot of big fire, too.

Hope all is well with you.

[misombra]

yeah i was reading about that this morning. you coastal people get more fires than we do here in the landlocked desert.

[Mish]

Thanks Vash. It's so incredibly sad what's been happening for the last couple of days. These fires have already passed all the greatest fires (by amount of deaths and lost property) in history of European settlement in Australia! Whole towns have been wiped out from the face of the earth. I know a few people in Victoria who have been affected. Thankfully the fires in NSW where we are, are not as bad.

Lipp, how are things going for you?

[vashti]

How far are you from the burn areas?

[Mish]

How far are you from the burn areas?

There were a couple of flames that got within an hour from Sydney, but they've all been taken care off already. So I'm happy to say, I'm pretty far away. The people in rural Victoria are the ones who are really going through it all right now.

[Lipp]

Victoria's burning up quite badly, yeah, myself I'm in the inner metropolitan area and haven't heard of any fires closing in, and no smokey horizons, so no worries yet, counting myself lucky that I didnt go on a recent 3-day trip to a beach a few hours away.

I'd probably be more affected by water scarcity if they have to allocate all of those megalitres to fire fighting, since its pretty strained as it is already.

But rural towns and villages are getting wiped out one by one.

[Lipp]

And

[url]http://maps.google.com.au/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=102249094339782735107. 0004625ef88fc64cf65fe&ll=-37.335224,145.415039&spn=3.057182,4.669189&z=7&sou rce=embed[/url]

So some within an hour or so away (by train).

[misombra]

how did these fires get started?

[Lipp]

how did these fires get started?

Well, the coppers are on a hunt for suspected arsonists, not sure if it applies to all fires though. But yet another 40+ degree day two days ago surely had something to do with it, coupled with 100kmph+ winds fueling it.

[misombra]

looks like on top of the towns you have a couple national forests on fire too. jeez. that is crazy.

[Charlie Boy II]

death tolls already at 130 confirmed. They reckon it could get to 200.

[misombra]

are these deaths people living in the towns or people fighting the fires?

are people evacuating?

[vashti]

Such a high death toll.. what a shame. I wonder if those poor people were caught by surprise?

We have a "fire season" here - hot weather coupled with very strong winds. The pyros never fail to capitalize.

[misombra]

i see what's happening. there's arsonists going around starting all these fires.

[Mish]

Such a high death toll.. what a shame. I wonder if those poor people were caught by surprise?

A few of them were. They say that once you see the smoke closing in it's already too late. Some people were caught in their cars as they tried to escape. Others stayed in their homes and were burnt as well. Looks like if you don't have a deep hole in the ground with an oxygen tank you are pretty much stuffed either way.

What a horrible feeling it must be.