HOPE: Australia Gets Surprise Rainstorm Cooler Temps Expected Tuesday

SYDNEY, AUS. (THECOUNT) —- Sudden rainfall and cooler temperatures Monday in southern Australia provided hope to those battling the devastating wildfires that have ravaged the country.

While the rain on Monday brought some relief to communities battling the fires, a challenge remains for fire crews attempting to complete strategic burns as they prepare for higher temperatures that have been forecast for later in the week, reports FOX29.

A total of 183 people have been arrested by police in Queensland, NSW, Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania for lighting bushfires over the last few months, figures obtained by news agency AAP show.

In New South Wales, 24 people were arrested for arson, risking prison sentences of up to 25 years.

In Queensland, police concluded that 103 of the fires had been deliberately lit, with 98 people, 67 of them juveniles, having been identified as the culprits, reports ZeroHedge.

“The link between arsonists and the deadly fires that devastate Australia every summer is well known and well documented, with the rate of deliberately lit fires escalating rapidly during the school holiday period,” reports Breitbart’s Simon Kent.

Around 85 percent of bushfires are caused by humans either deliberately or accidentally starting them, according to Dr Paul Read, co-director of the National Centre for Research in Bushfire and Arson.

“About 85 per cent are related to human activity, 13 per cent confirmed arson and 37 per cent suspected arson,” he said.

“The remainder are usually due to reckless fire lighting or even just children playing with fire.”

The news also highlighted the link between school holidays and kids starting fires, commenting:

“School holidays are a prime time for fire bugs, but especially over summer.” The kids have got time to get out there and light, and the most dangerous adults choose hot days.”

“Police are now working on the premise arson is to blame for much of the devastation caused this bushfire season,” reports 7 News Sydney.

New environmental policies that restrict “prescribed burning,” where land owners burn off flammable ground cover in cooler months in a controlled manner so it doesn’t contribute to bushfires, have also exacerbated the problem.

The fact that the bushfires were deliberately started and have nothing to do with man-made climate change hasn’t prevented that being the dominant narrative.

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Geo quick facts: Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands. It is the largest country in Oceania and the world’s sixth-largest country by total area – Wikipedia.