Australian Bushfire

With the death toll from Australia's wildfires expected to exceed 200, state officials say they will rethink policies that allow residents to decide for themselves whether to evacuate their homes.
John Brumby, the premier of Australia's southern Victoria state, said the coroner has identified 50 bodies that haven't been added to the official death toll of 181.

"This is going to be a significant number. It will exceed 200 deaths," Brumby said.

The Country Fire Authority said Wednesday local time that the official tally of houses destroyed in the blazes, which began over the weekend, had risen to more than 1,000, from 750 earlier.
Some 5,000 people are homeless, and 2,850 square kilometres of land has been scorched.
Thousands of mostly volunteer firefighters were still battling more than a dozen fires across the state on Wednesday.

Officials believe some of the fires were deliberately set.

Australia's top law officer, federal Attorney General Robert McLelland, said anyone found guilty of lighting a fire that caused multiple deaths would face life in prison if convicted.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said late Tuesday "they should be allowed to rot in jail."

In some areas, authorities have sealed off towns because they are being treated as crime scenes that must be scoured for bodies and evidence.

Emergency teams moving into the towns burned out by the inferno have found charred bodies on roadsides and in crashed cars — grim signs of futile attempts to flee raging wildfires fed by 100 km/h winds, record heat and drought.

Meanwhile, some residents are beginning to return to their homes elsewhere.

"Where do you start? Where do you start?" said Peter Denson, who's returned to ruins in Kinglake.

"It's like a big atom bomb has gone off," said he of the town, where about 39 people died in the blazes.

- Source : www.cbc.ca/world/story/2009/02/10/australia-fires.html?ref=rss -

In the midst of all these, a video of a thirsty koala bear being found by firefighters in the wilds became a hit. Being nicknamed Sam, the koala gulped down 2 bottles of water fed by one of the firefighters. Notoriously ill-tempered and aggresive, it became the mascot for this series of event haunting many Australians. Vid of the koala down below : ~:~:~

--------Sam da` Koala---------