Death toll in Australian fires up to 108

HEALESVILLE, Australia (AP) — Towering flames razed entire towns in southeastern Australia and burned fleeing residents in their cars as the death toll rose to at least 108 on Sunday, making it the country’s deadliest fire disaster.

At least 700 homes were destroyed in Saturday’s inferno when searing temperatures and wind blasts produced a firestorm that swept across a swath of the country’s Victoria state, where all the deaths occurred.

“Hell in all its fury has visited the good people of Victoria,“ Prime Minister Kevin Rudd told reporters as he toured the fire zone on Sunday. “It’s an appalling tragedy for the nation.“

Thousands of exhausted volunteer firefighters were still battling about 30 uncontrolled fires Sunday night in Victoria, officials said, though conditions had eased considerably. It would be days before they were brought under control, even if temperatures stayed down, they said.

The scene was utter devastation Sunday in at least two regions — the town of Marysville and several hamlets in the Kinglake district, both about 50 miles north of the state capital Melbourne.