Sorry, the position for the “best job in the world” has been filled. Ben Southall, a freckled and golden-haired 34-year-old Brit beat out 34,000 applicants from 200 countries to land the coveted island job.

Starting July 1, Southall will move into a three-bedroom beachfront property overlooking the Great Barrier Reef. For six months, he’ll also clean the pool, feed some fish and blog/vlog about what’s going on around the tropical island in sunny Queensland, Australia. Oh, and he’ll receive a cool 100 G’s for his “troubles.”

A former fundraiser, Southall is an avid traveler. The Brit has traveled to various exotic locations and “love[s] discovering new places.”

“Last year, I drove all around Africa, I crossed deserts, climbed mountains, run marathons, bungee jump, mountain-bike, scuba-dive and snorkel everywhere because I’m practically a fish myself” he said in his minute-long application video.

Southall will also receive free return airfare from his home in Britain, transportation around the island, a computer and filming equipment as well as the opportunity to travel to other islands.

Tourism Queensland chief Anthony Hayes said the competition has generated more than $110 million in free publicity, according to the Telegraph, a nice economic boost during slow economic times.

Visit the island website to sign up for Southall’s updates.

This is an exclusive special report from Blast Magazine

BRISBANE, Australia — At least 181 people have been confirmed dead and thousands of homes have been destroyed in Victoria’s worst bushfire disaster.

According to ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) online, Victorian police are prepared for the death toll to reach 300 pending formal identification and retrieval of the dead.

Police Chief Commissioner Christine Nixon has warned the public to be prepared for more fatalities.

“We are going house by house and street by street to search for bodies … and we have some cause to believe there are clearly more people who have died in this fire” she said.

Many of the deceased died in their cars whilst trying to escape the fires but were quickly overcome by the flames.

Over 4200 calls were made to the state’s emergency hotline as fires approached residential areas.

According to the Herald Sun, emergency hotline operators (000) were forced to listen “to terrified Victorians dying over the phone” when help could not reach them in time.

Police forensic experts have the grim and time consuming job of identifying the dead, a nearly impossible feat considering the extreme heat of the fire.

Police are also looking for a man suspected of starting two fires on the outskirts of Melbourne (the capital city of Victoria.)

Although the blazes were quickly extinguished, the Country Fire Authority warns that they had the potential to become major fires.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has angrily condemned any arsonists responsible for lighting fires while speaking with Channel 9 reporters, saying that there are no other words to describe the arson than “mass murder.”

Survivors of the bushfire disaster have taken refuge in hastily erected centers and continue to wait for funds and supplies.

Australians have rallied for the bushfire victims raising $21.5 million for the Red Cross Bushfire Appeal, which aired on the Nine Network last night.

Several A-list stars such as Russell Crowe, Nicole Kidman, Keith Urban, Anthony LaPaglia, Miranda Kerr, Orlando Bloom, Ellen DeGeneres, Hugh Jackman and Rachel Griffiths, lent their support to the cause.

Australian Olympians as well as NRL (National Rugby League) and AFL (Australian Football League) players worked in the call center, as people from all over Australia phoned in to donate money.

This is an exclusive special report from Blast Magazine.

BRISBANE, Australia — As bush fires continue to devastate the southern state of Victoria, residents in far north Queensland are still battling floodwaters resulting from ex- Cyclone Ellie’s torrential rainfall.

The cyclone, which was downgraded to a tropical low after crossing the coast on Feb. 2, has dumped rain continuously for the past week, causing massive flood damage to the state’s roads and infrastructure.

According to ABC (Australian Broadcasting Corporation) online, the Emergency Services Minister Neil Roberts has declared more than 62 percent of Queensland a “disaster zone.”

“Rainfall of between 200-300 millimeters (8-12 inches) has fallen in the Cairns to Mackay region since tropical cyclone Ellie crossed the coast and it has recharged already flooded rivers,” he said.

Over 330 millimeters (13 inches) of rain has been recorded in the town of Ingham alone, which has been cut off for the past eight days as flood waters hit record levels. At least 3000 properties have been affected by the floodwaters, the town only recognizable from the roofs visible above the water.

More than 50 percent of Ingham residents have been forced to seek accommodation at the evacuation center, as food and water supplies begin to run low.

Not only have schools and businesses been closed but local authorities are also urging citizens not to go into the water after several reports of crocodile sightings close to residential areas.

In Cairns it is already feared that a five year old boy is dead, following a suspected crocodile attack.

The Army and the Red Cross have been called in to help with the relief effort in the far north and other affected areas, with weather forecasts suggesting that the waters will finally begin to recede.

However the damage bill is estimated to cost Queensland $109 million, with that number expected to rise once the full extent of the destruction is ascertained.