Three American firefighters died in a water tanker plane crash Thursday while battling wildfires in Australia, New South Wales Premier Gladys Berejiklian confirmed. Berejiklian also gave "heartfelt condolences" to the families and said flags in New South Wales would be flown at half-staff Friday. Coulson grounded other firefighting aircraft as a precaution pending investigation, reducing planes available to firefighters in New South Wales and neighboring Victoria state. The plane crash raises the death toll from the fires to at least 31 since September. Australian Transport Safety Bureau, the national air crash investigator, and state police will investigate the crash site, which firefighters described as an active fire ground.

Source: Fox News January 23, 2020 06:00 UTC