Razed Australian town declared crime scene

AUSTRALIA: A picturesque hamlet, which became an emblem of Australia’s worst ever wildfires when aerial pictures showed it razed to the ground, was declared a crime scene for suspected arson Monday.

Police blocked cars from driving into Marysville in northeast Victoria state, saying there were still bodies in the streets and the whole town was a crime scene, the national AAP news agency said.

It’s believed the fire was deliberately lit, the agency said, and police forensic crews were sifting through the ruins of what once was a popular tourist town.

At least 126 people were killed and more than 700 homes were destroyed in the wildfires that swept through tens of thousands of hectares (acres) in Victoria over the weekend. Victoria state police commissioner Christine Nixon said all bushfire areas would be treated as crime scenes to determine if arson was involved.

“At this stage we have a team at the fire at Churchill, in the Gippsland Valley, which is certainly one that we believe was deliberately lit,” Nixon said.

“Our fire experts and our own investigators have suggested that the way that it happened, how fast that it happened, that there is good evidence to believe that it was lit.”

Forensic investigators have also begun work in the Kinglake area where more than 30 people died and hundreds of homes were destroyed.

Whittlesea, Monday, AFP