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At least 750 homes have been destroyed and 3733 people have registered with the Red Cross after evacuating their properties.
The sheer number and seriousness of their injuries was so overwhelming the state's biggest trauma hospital ran out of morphine, calling for emergency supplies to treat the 20 most seriously injured victims.
Patients started arriving at 9pm on Saturday and by noon yesterday 10 were on life support in an intensive care unit filled to capacity for the first time since it opened last year, the Herald Sun reports.
Emergency doctors at the state's top burns unit could only compare the carnage with the Bali bombing victims they treated six years earlier.
Last night the Department of Human Services confirmed there were 60 hospital admissions across the state, with 13 people in intensive care units, 46 in general wards and one in pediatric.
At the Royal Children's Hospital, a two-year-old is fighting for life in intensive care, while a 12-year-old is also recovering from burns.
Alfred trauma specialist Dr John Coleridge said the hospital's emergency plans coped well, but its specialist resources had to be kept for only the most severe cases.
"Some will be scarred for years," he said.
"Rehabilitation will take three, six, nine months, multiple procedures. They will have to wear special fitted suits.
"They will have a long ordeal in front of them. Unfortunately some will not survive."
More than 100 doctors, nurses and surgeons - including dozens who rushed in from days off - were taking on duty at the Alfred.
Temperatures in parts of Melbourne reached 48 degrees Celsius (118 degrees Fahrenheit) in the last few weeks. Dozens of heat-related deaths have been reported.
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By Sunday, the temperatures had dropped to the mid-20s in the area. Officials were hoping for some help from milder weather moving in. Droplets of rain had started to fall in some areas.
Northern Australia, on the other hand, is grappling with a different problem. Sixty percent of the state of Queensland was flooded, officials reported, and residents were warned to be on the lookout for crocodiles in urban areas.
here is a link to the Red Cross Appeal
http://www.redcross.org.au/vic/services_emergencyservices_victorian-bushfires-appeal-2009.htm
The 2009 Victorian bushfire Fund to assist individuals and communities affected by devastating bushfires in Victoria has been launched by the Premier John Brumby in partnership with Red Cross and the Federal Government. A number of corporate organisations including NAB, ANZ, CBA and Wesfarmers have also contributed to the fund.
As of 12:30pm on the 9th February, the Fund had received $3.8 million from over 21,000 people through the website and phone, with governments including the Victorian Government and Federal Government and corporates pledging additional sums. Donations are still continuing to flow in.
An independent panel made up of community leaders will oversee the appeal Fund's operation. Criteria for assistance will include the extent of the hardship covered and the extent to which a person's livelihood has been impacted.
UNPRECEDENTED weather conditions made it impossible for authorities to predict the extent of Victoria's horrific bushfires, experts say.
The fire danger indices, based on a range of variables and used by authorities and climatologists to determine the intensity of a blaze, reached uncharted levels on Saturday.
A rating of 100 indicates that a fire would be uncontrollable, according to David Jones from the Bureau of Meteorology.
On Saturday, it reached 400.
for updates if anyone is interested ...go to
www.news.com.au
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.
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.
Southerly winds this morning were fanning the blaze in the Yea-Murrindindi area in the state's northeast, with warning in place for Acheron, Cathedral Lane, Rubicon, Thornton and Taggerty Road and Bulls Lane.
Threats have eased to towns near the nearby Beechworth fire, around Healesville on Melbourne's outer eastern fringe, and from the Bunyip Ridge and Churchill-Jeeralang fires in Gippsland.
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.
..............................
Guest Book for
Australia Wildfire Victims
http://www.legacy.com/CAN/GB/GuestbookView.aspx?PersonId=123938924&PageNo=1
The 39-year-old man did not appear in Morwell Magistrates Court in Gippsland yesterday on one count of arson causing death, one of intentionally or recklessly causing a bushfire, and one of possessing child pornography.
The accused was inside the court complex but did not appear in the dock. His legal aid solicitor suggested that his client was psychologically too unwell to front the court.
"The accused is in a fragile mental state. He should be seen by a doctor," he said.
When police confronted him in a public place, the alleged arsonist "went without a fight". He did not seek bail.
The man has been transferred to Melbourne for his own safety.
Following his arrest, police cautioned the community to remain calm, stressing that the accused was charged over the fire last Saturday, but not the fires in nearby Boolara the previous week.
Revenge fears
Survivors of the bushfires have expressed anger - some wanting to seek revenge - at the people who may have deliberately lit the fires, which have now officially claimed 181 lives.
However, the death toll is expected to reach 300. The fire the man is accused of starting on Black Saturday wiped out almost 36,000ha in the Latrobe Valley region of Gippsland.
Up to 100 people are believed to have been killed in Marysville alone. Another major investigation is underway into the fires at Boolara. The alleged arsonist faces up to 25 years in jail if convicted of arson, while the bushfire charge carries a maximum term of 15 years.
Premier John Brumby, while not commenting on the charged man, said arson was heinous. He said: "I've made very clear my views about arson. It's such a shocking, terrible thing to do.
"We've seen some shocking fires and people who light fires deliberately put the community and human life at great risk.
"I don't intend to comment on the specifics of this matter. But it's an unspeakable and heinous crime.
Mr Brumby led a minute's silence for more than 30,000 fans as the AFL staged a special bushfire benefit match last night.
The round-one pre-season game between the Western Bulldogs and Essendon was scheduled to be played in Darwin. But the league quickly switched the game to Melbourne's Telstra Dome once the full horror of the Victoria fires disaster became apparent.
While there were hopes the game might attract a capacity crowd of more than 50,000, league officials were still happy that around 37,000 tickets were pre-sold. It appears some fans bought tickets as a donation and did not attend.
More than $1.2 million was raised at the game on and immediately after the final siren, it was announced that the Red Cross appeal had hit an overall total of $100 million.
Positioned in the ash and rubble, the trailer is serving as a temporary morgue for the Victoria fires victims of Marysville, the epicentre of the nation's bushfire disaster.
Today, the township's residents will be taken by bus into Marysville for the first time since last weekend's firestorm flattened their properties and devastated their lives, The Australian reports.
At a closed meeting yesterday, police officers tried to prepare them before they re-entered what has become Australia's biggest crime scene.
In a bid to minimise the trauma to residents, the 150 police officers who remain in the town searching for bodies under collapsed homes will stop their gruesome work.
Mr Guilfoyle said that tally was from bodies recovered only from the Cumberland Resort, cars and the town's streets. Bodies buried in Marysville's collapsed houses were still to be recovered.
"I am just bracing myself for the final toll because once they start lifting the roofs off those places, the toll is going to skyrocket," he said. The Red Cross isstill receiving missing persons reports, a week after the catastrophe. Only 12 to 14 of hundreds of homes remain standing in the once pretty tourist town.
"We're doing this as sensitively as we can," said Victoria Police sergeant David Rowles.
"Obviously there are certain things up there that I have advised them as to what they will see. They're happy they know it's there and they're prepared forthat.
"They understand 100 per cent what the job is. They empathise with the police who have got a truly horrific job up there."
The residents who take the tour will not be allowed to leave their buses. Mr Guilfoyle has already decided he won't be on board.
"I'm going to herd cattle and build fences and do positive things with my kids," he said.
Police estimate it will be two to four weeks before they will be able to return to their properties. And even that timeline is not guaranteed. Most understand the delay. But there is also frustration.
"We've all been stewing here," says Bernie Culhane, a retired police officer who lost his retirement village unit in the fires. "It's just a case of trying to get a bit of closure on the thing so we can all see for ourselves."
"(They said) you don't know if someone didn't run into your house the minute you left and you find someone dead in there," he said. "Personally I could've coped, but a lot of people wouldn't have coped with that."
At least 100 people have been killed and more than 1000 left homeless as a result of fires in Kinglake and surrounding areas.
Reports today claim a power line snapped in record heat and strong winds at Kilmore East last Saturday sparking the deadly blaze.
It is believed a class action was lodged in the Supreme Court on Friday against the Singapore-owned electricity company responsible for maintaining many of Victorias power lines.
The lawsuit would cover residents, businesses and farmers who lost their homes in the deadly inferno.
Victoria Police Chief Commission Christine Nixon says authorities are still determining how the Kinglake bushfire started.
Asked to confirm police had taken a power line and a power pole as evidence, Ms Nixon would only say police are working hard to determine how all the fires started, and described the investigation into the Kinglake blaze as "broad".
"At this stage we are not able to confirm how it started. I understand there is some legal action that people are taking, but at this stage we're still investigating its cause," Ms Nixon told the Nine Network.
"We've taken a range of evidence and we will, obviously, be working with fire authorities about what might have caused it.
"But the whole circumstances of that fire are part of our Taskforce Phoenix, and as we move through that we'll be able to tell the community more once we're able to confirm or deny what we think is the cause of these fires."
The Slidders Lawyers website calls for anyone who has suffered loss or damage as a consequence of the recent bushfires to contact them.
"If you have been burnt by the recent bushfires, please register your interest using the form below as soon as possible," the website says.
"At Slidders Lawyers, we are helping landowners and leaseholders obtain compensation for the losses caused by these bushfires."
SP Ausnet said today it will cooperate fully with any investigations into the cause of the fires.
"We stand ready to assist the relevant authorities with their inquiries if it is necessary for us to do so now and in the coming months," SP Ausnet spokeswoman Louisa Graham said in a statement.
She said the company's priority was restoring power to fire-affected areas as soon as possible.
Victorian federal MP Fran Bailey said the Country Fire Authority (CFA) had told her one of the power lines had broken before the fire.
"It was whipping against the ground and sparked," she said. "We've got to do better, deliver our power better."
Victorian Premier John Brumby refused to comment on the power line claim, saying it would be examined as part of the Royal Commission into the bushfires.
"No stone will be left unturned. So, I think it's important the Royal Commission does its work. And, the Royal Commission will, of course, look at all of the factors with the fires," Mr Brumby said.
Assistant Commissioner Steve Fontana said the conditions Disaster Victim Identification teams were dealing with were "very difficult" and it was important to be accurate before updating the toll.
"We're going through all the remains that have been found," Mr Fontana said.
"I must stress this is a very difficult and painstaking task in terms of, you can imagine the condition, the conditions that were out there, the intensity of the heat. I must stress it's very difficult so it's got to be done properly."
But, he said, an updated death toll was expected to be released later today.
Ninety army reservists from interstate flew into Melbourne today to join the search and recovery effort as authorities warned of another severe fire threat with extreme weather conditions early next week.
As well as predictions of increasing temperatures, the Department of Sustainability and Environment's chief fire officer Ewan Waller said winds would average between 60-80km/h with gusts of up to 140km/h in some areas on Tuesday.
"Tuesday's severe weather day will significantly increase risks for firefighters. The threat of falling trees and limbs will increase in these conditions,'' Mr Waller said.
"However, we remain vulnerable to breakaways as well as new outbreaks, particularly as weather conditions once again deteriorate this week.''
Today, fire crews made the most of a cool change that swept through key areas late on Friday to continue containment work on the main fires, including the Kilmore East-Murrindindi complexes, to reduce further risk of flare-ups and breakouts.
By 4pm (AEDT) Saturday, the 623 fires listed by the DSE had burnt up to 400,000 hectares, with four major fires still burning out of control.
Authorities warned that Victorians could not afford to be complacent in the milder conditions and they again urged people to remain vigilant and have a well-rehearsed fire plan.
Brigadier Michael Arnold, commander of the defence department's Joint Task Force assisting the fire relief effort, said the new wave of soldiers would help police and forensic experts in the grim search for any more disaster victims around the devastated Kinglake region.
At least 210 people are known to have died following the Black Saturday infernos - already the worst of any bushfire disasters in Australia's history - and at least 37 people are still missing.
Last week, Victorian Coroner Jennifer Coate ordered virtually all bushfire-ravaged sites to be closely searched again after several sets of human remains were recovered from sites already searched.
"This is a search task requested of us by the police. The coroner wanted to be convinced that a reasonable search had been conducted,'' Brig Arnold said.
"To do that, the police, with us, will go right through the 1300 or so sites that were affected by the fire to confirm that there are no more human remains.
"It's not an easy task. We know that there are 37 missing persons still, the odds are we will come across human remains during this search.''
and no one seemed to be interested ..so i stopped posting info
Final Advice - Contained Fires 3.00pm
Final Advice for contained fires and bushfire recovery information.
08/03/2009
Incident Information
The following fires have now been contained:
* Bunyip Ridge Track Fire
* Kilmore East Murrindindi South Complex Fires
* Muskvale Hogans Road Fire
* Kilmore East Murrindindi North Complex Fires
These fires currently pose no threat to communities as the spread of the fire has halted. Fire may still be burning freely within the perimeter and further work is required to bring the fire under control.
These fires will be listed as controlled or under control when the complete perimeter is secured, no breakaway is expected and only requires patrolling.
Core Advice
* There may still be localised smoke in the vicinity of fire affected areas.
* Road use in the area may still be hazardous. Watch out for fallen trees, power lines, abandoned cars, wildlife and emergency services vehicles still operating in the area.
* Trees and branches in fire affected areas may continue to fall.
* Residents should avoid these areas and remain vigilant to protect themselves from injury.
* People in the area need to remain alert as there may not be a warning should conditions change unexpectedly. Continue to listen to ABC or local radio for updates on this fire.
* Be prepared to activate your bushfire survival plan if necessary.
Community Information
Due the current level of fire activity incident information for these fires will not be updated as regularly.
When produced, community updates and newsletters will be available on the CFA website.
Bushfire Recovery
* For information on a broad range of services please refer to the Victoria Online website.
* For information on a broad range of services please refer to the Municipal Association of Victoria (MAV) website.
* For information on recovering from the bushfires please refer to the Department of Human Services.
* For information to assist people affected by emergencies please refer to Red Cross.
* For information on the safe return to your property please refer to the Building Commission Victoria website. The booklet is also available on the CFA website.
* For information related to agriculture, food and forestry please refer to the Department of Primary Industry website.
* For information about clean up and restoration grants for small businesses please refer to the Rural Finance Victoria website
* For information on current road closures please refer to the VicRoads website.
Are they saying how long for a recovery from all this? I'm sure it's a number of years, but what kind of things are they predicting??
Thanks for the update Mysttt.....xoxo.......
but aus is right behind our mates ..and they will get through it ..
we just need weeks of rain there ..victoria is suffering from the worst drought on record ..
