A bushfire rips through Mount Lawson State Park in Australia's Victoria state

A bushfire rips through Mount Lawson State Park in Australia's Victoria state

Bushfires have razed hundreds of buildings across southeast Australia, authorities said Sunday, as they confirmed the first death from the disaster. 

Temperatures soared past 40C as a heatwave blanketed the state of Victoria, sparking dozens of blazes that ripped through more than 300,000 hectares (740,000 acres) combined. 

Originally published on doc.afp.com, part of the BLOX Digital Content Exchange.