Bushfires add to Australia's disaster misery
A wildfire raging near Perth in Western Australia has destroyed and damaged dozens of homes.
A firewoman was injured and several people went to hospital suffering minor smoke inhalation.
In Roleystone and nearby Kelmscott, at least 59 houses and two schools were razed and 30 properties damaged, despite the efforts of 200 firemen, said Craig Hynes, the local fire chief. "The pleasing thing is that there's been no serious injuries or fatalities," he said. "Life is our priority."
He added that his force was close to stopping the fire's spread and another that broke out over the weekend in the same part of Western Australia. Driven by winds of up to 70mph, the two blazes have destroyed 4,000 acres of forest land to the north and south-east of Perth since Saturday.
The Roleystone fire began when a man using an electric grinder in his garden ignited dry grass with sparks. The other began when a tree branch blown down by strong winds hit power lines.
Lionel Goodall fought the blaze as it raced towards his house. "All the backyard is gone - it is all just black and smoke," he told the BBC. "All the fences were alight so I just got my hose out and started putting all the fires out and in my next door neighbour's yard as well. We've got farmland behind us with short grass and it was very, very quick."
About 100 people who were evacuated from the path of the blaze have not been allowed to return home.
Huge areas of Australia's east coast are recovering from a major cyclone that struck in Queensland state last week and from flooding in Queensland and southern Victoria state. The army is leading the recovery effort with bulldozers, cranes and tanks brought in today to help move debris.
Prime minister Julia Gillard said anyone affected by the fires could be added to the list of victims spared from contributing to the government's planned £1.1billion flood tax.
Exactly two years ago 173 people died in the country's worst bushfires as they swept through Victoria, causing widespread devastation.
