There is a day Australia remembers called Ash Wednesday. In 1983, 47 Victorians lost their lives due to bushfires. This weekend, Australia has a new and very sad memory – Black Saturday. I wrote last week that Victoria was having a heatwave. Saturday was the hottest day for Victoria on record. It also has led to one of the biggest tragedies Australia has seen. Massive bushfires covered the state and at last count over 750 homes have been lost and 128 people confirmed dead. Entire towns such as Kinglake and the beautiful historic Marysville have been wiped out. The count is still just beginning (many areas are still under threat or are too unsafe to access) and the true toll of the fires will not be realised for days. If you would like to donate to the Victorian Bushfire Appeal you can visit the Red Cross website (be patient, the site is getting overloaded) here. If you’re in Australia you can also give blood. For mores ways to help visit the ABC Website. On Twitter, 774melbourne is providing live updates. My thoughts and prayers are with all those affected. Normal posting will resume tomorrow.