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LONDON: Outspoken academic Germaine Greer has branded Australian authorities arsonists for failing to carry out regular burn-offs, which she says could have prevented the deadly Victorian bushfires.

Greer said Australians were paying the price for repeatedly ignoring the lessons of past bushfires -- the need for burn-offs in cooler months to lessen the risk of blazes in the summer.

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Stuart Rintoul 

DISASTER victim identification teams will begin talking to grieving relatives of victims of Victoria's Black Saturday bushfires this weekend, to brace them for the dreadful reality that the remains of some victims will never be identified.

Forensic police have also begun visiting relatives of victims, asking for DNA samples.

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(Asa Wahlquist and Matthew Clayfield | February 13, 2009)

ONE in five victims of the Victorian bushfires may not have had insurance, the industry estimates.

Insurance Council chief executive Kerrie Kelly said research showed more than one fifth of all households did not have home or contents cover. "Regrettably some people and some businesses will have no insurance at all, based on the work we have done on non-insurance in 2007," she said

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The Royal Commission will deliver an interim report before the next fire season. (AFP: Paul Crock )

Retired Supreme Court judge Bernard Teague will lead the Royal Commission into last weekend's devastating bushfires in Victoria.

Victorian Premier John Brumby says even with 21 years of experience in the Supreme Court, Mr Teague's task as commissioner will be immense.

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(Expats to support bushfire appeal in US Peter Mitchell February 12, 2009)

Celebrity-studded fundraisers will be held in New York and Los Angeles on the weekend to support victims of the Victorian bushfires.

The events will raise money for the Australian Red Cross Bushfire Appeal.

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FAMILIES who have lost loved ones in the Victoria fires will receive a $10,000 compassion and bereavement payment.

The Victorian Government has announced that the payment can be used by families to meet costs associated with the loss of a family member, including funeral-related costs.

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