Bushfires in Australia

Australian officials used a respite on Jan. 6 from fierce wildfires that have killed 25 people across the country's southeast to race to reopen blocked roads and evacuate people who have been trapped for days.

Bushfires burned dangerously out of control on Australia's east coast on Jan. 4, fanned by high temperatures and strong winds that had firefighters battling to save lives and property, as a change in wind conditions merged several large fire fronts.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison visited firefighters battling Australia's bushfire crisis on Dec. 22 as he apologised for a Hawaiian holiday that ended early after public outrage.    

A scorching heatwave intensified bushfires ravaging parts of Australia on Dec. 21, and out-of-control blazes surrounding Sydney worsened under "catastrophic" conditions.    

Australia's eastern coast has been hit by a record-breaking heatwave, which has moved in from the west of the country, fanning hundreds of fires in its path.    

Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison issued a rare public apology on Dec. 20 and cut short a Hawaiian vacation in response to mounting public anger after two volunteer firefighters were killed battling bushfires sweeping the country's east coast.

One suspect was detained for questioning by police in connection with a Monday wildfire in Limassol district, which continue to rage overnight and was said to have been partially contained by the early morning.

Temperatures in southern Australia topped 49 degrees on Thursday, shattering previous records as sizzling citizens received free beer and heat-stressed bats fell from trees, reported AFP.

A large fire that began in the early hours of Saturday in Hania, Crete, was brought under partial control on Sunday by a large force of firefighters who battled the blaze through the night.

Nearly 50 firefighters and 20 trucks were battling on Tuesday morning a fire that broke out on the outskirts of Kounina in Aigialia, northern Peloponnese in the early hours.

According to a report on Skai the fire started in the early hours and was fanned by strong winds to spread to inaccessible parts of the region.