The body of a man was found in a burnt car early on Wednesday on the south coast of New South Wales after emergency workers began reaching the most damaged areas, and police said the death toll will rise. In Victoria state, four people remain missing, state Premier Daniel Andrews said, after a massive blaze ripped through Gippsland – a rural region about 500 km (310 miles) east of Melbourne. In Milton, a small town on the on the NSW south coast, locals queued for hours for the few remaining items left of shelves on supermarkets. Meanwhile, Australia’s capital Canberra was blanketed in thick smoke, reaching about 20 times hazardous levels, prompting health warnings. The smoke has also drifted to New Zealand where it has turned the daytime sky orange across the South Island.

Source: National Post January 01, 2020 22:41 UTC