By Micah Jonah
January 11, 2026
Human remains have been discovered in southeastern Australia as bushfires burning out of control for days continue to destroy homes, cut electricity supplies, devastate vast areas of bushland, police said on Sunday.
Authorities said the remains were found near a vehicle close to the town of Longwood, about 110 kilometres north of Melbourne, in Victoria state. Police said the victim has not yet been identified.
The fires, fueled by a summer heatwave, have burned through more than 350,000 hectares of land across Victoria since midweek. More than 300 structures, including homes, have been destroyed, while thousands of households remain without power.
Officials say the blazes are the most severe to hit southeastern Australia since the catastrophic 2019–2020 “Black Summer” bushfires, which burned an area the size of Turkiye and claimed 33 lives.
The Longwood fire, one of the largest still burning, has already destroyed homes, vineyards and large areas of agricultural land.
Victoria Premier Jacinta Allan said more than 30 fires were burning across the state. In neighbouring New South Wales, several fires near the Victorian border were burning at the highest danger rating, according to the state’s Rural Fire Service.
Chris Hardman, chief fire officer of Forest Fire Management Victoria, warned that it could take weeks before firefighters gain control of the blazes.
“These fires will not be contained before it gets hot, dry and windy again,” he told Australian Broadcasting Corporation television.
A total fire ban has been imposed across Victoria as thousands of firefighters and more than 70 aircraft battle the flames. Authorities also warned that bushfire smoke is affecting air quality across large parts of the state, including metropolitan Melbourne.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said the federal government would provide emergency funding to residents affected by the fires, support for farmers facing the high cost of emergency livestock feeding.
“It’s estimated that thousands of head of cattle are likely to have been impacted,” Albanese said.
Emergency services continue to urge residents in fire affected areas to remain alert as extreme weather conditions are expected to persist.
