Victoria told to brace for 'property loss or worse'
BBC••world
Key Points:
- Victoria and South Australia are facing extreme heatwave conditions with record high temperatures forecast, prompting dangerous fire warnings and total fire bans in Victoria.
- Victoria's Country Fire Authority warns residents to prepare for significant property loss or worse, with temperatures expected to reach 42°C and catastrophic fire danger ratings across the state.
- A bushfire near Longwood, Victoria, has destroyed at least ten homes and burned 36,000 hectares, severely impacting the town of Ruffy, though no lives have been confirmed lost so far.
- Three people remain unaccounted for in the Longwood fire area, with authorities unable to locate them after their property was destroyed by fire.
- South Australia is also battling multiple small fires amid extreme heat,
