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128 dead as wildfire continues to ravage Victoria

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-02-09 13:34

CANBERRA -- The death toll from the Victorian bushfires in south Australia reached 128 on Monday and authorities said the number of fire victims was likely to rise even further.

At least 750 homes have been destroyed and more than 330,000 hectares burnt out, while authorities said some fires could take weeks to contain.

Country Fire Authority (CFA) state duty officer Mark Glover said the toll could still climb further.

"It's now at 108 and still likely to climb unfortunately," Glover told ABC Television.

The death toll surpasses that from the 1983 Ash Wednesday bushfires, in which 75 people died in Victoria and South Australia, and the Black Friday bushfires of 1939, which killed 71.