Australia wildfire death toll rising

The death toll continues to rise in Australia, thanks to raging wildfires that have burned entire towns off the map. Currently at 108, officials say the toll could rise even further as they battle flames and search through wreckage, according to Reuters.

Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd described the fires as “hell in all its fury.” Firefighters are still battling more than a dozen blazes, as the fire quickly advances further into several towns, fanned by winds.

The flames are moving so fast some people burned to death in their cars trying to escape. Others, who‚ refused‚ to flee their residences, burned to death in their homes.

Officials still need to sift through the more than 700 houses that have burnt to the ground and affected by the fires, some of which have been blamed on arsonists. The death toll cannot be finalized until that happens.

The fires, in large part, are due to Australia experiencing it’s hottest summer in nearly a century.‚ In Australia’s southeast, flames were fanned by wind as the temperature reached 115 degrees. The flames travelled quickly, destroying everything that came in their way.

The fires, so far, have affected nearly 1,160 square miles, more than twice the size of New York City.

The Prime Minister has deployed more than 3,000 firefighters to fight the flames, one for every square kilometer affected. Rudd has expressed his condolences and grief to those who have lost family members or their homes, and has vowed to do everything he can to fight the fires and prevent more deaths.