2009-02-22 10:35:11 LIVE: Watch the National Day of Mourning events from the Rod Laver Arena for bushfire victims, due to start at 11am.(00:55)
Australian Search Task Group soldiers searching fire affected properties in the Marysville area
Bells sounds to mark national mourning ceremony (click here)
February 22, 2009 - 11:44AM
Bells have sounded in Melbourne to mark the beginning of a memorial service to remember those who died in Victoria's devastating bushfires.
Tens of thousands have gathered in Melbourne, including hundreds of bushfire survivors, who were shuttled into the city from fire-ravaged towns....
Thousands mourn bushfire loss (click here)
February 22, 2009
Bells have sounded in Melbourne to mark the beginning of a memorial service to remember those who died in Victoria's devastating bushfires.
Tens of thousands have gathered in Melbourne, including hundreds of bushfire survivors, who were shuttled into the city from fire-ravaged towns.
The Rod Laver Arena was filled with people, including political leaders, religious leaders, Princess Anne and other dignitaries.
Many of those at the service were wearing the distinctive yellow overalls of the firefighters.
At least 209 people are known to have died in the February 7 fire storms, most of those from a sweep of towns and villages northeast of Melbourne....
The Climate Institute says the devastating Victorian bushfires were the direct result of climate change.
The Institute says the conditions which caused the severity of the fires - the extreme heat, the low humidity, wind speed and the drought in Victoria - are all the result of global warming.
The Institute's CEO John Connor told AM's Michael Vincent the catastrophic bushfire conditions had been predicted for several years and he says they'll continue unless global greenhouse gas emissions are cut....
Weather raises fire risk (click here)
February 21, 2009
AUTHORITIES have warned that the threat of new fires in Victoria remains high this weekend, with hot weather, northerly winds and the chance of lightning increasing the risk.
CFA deputy chief fire officer Steven Warrington said yesterday it was not too late for residents to make fire plans, particularly in areas where fires were continuing to burn.
The warnings came as the official fire death toll rose to 209 yesterday. Police said 38 people were now recorded as having died in Kinglake, 45 in Marysville, and 42 in Strathewen.
The Insurance Council of Australia said that there had been 6230 claims resulting from the bushfires. The claims total $790 million.
A poll last week also found that the public wants tougher action in handling bushfire threats. Nearly six in 10 people believe there should be an order to evacuate rather than advice to decide whether to stay and defend or leave, UMR Research found.
In the national poll of 1000 people, more than nine in 10 respondents believed arsonists who lit fires that killed should be charged with murder.
MICHELL GRATTAN and PETER GREGORY
