Australian homes destroyed by wildfire

One firefighter was injured and several people were treated for smoke inhalation.

Firefighters were close to stopping the spread of that wildfire and another that broke out over the weekend in the same area of Western Australia state.

The two blazes have razed 4,000 acres of forested land to the north and south east of Perth since Saturday. At least 41 houses were destroyed and another 19 damaged, despite the efforts of 200 firefighters. But the tally could rise as a survey continued.

The fires in Australia’s far west come as huge areas of the east coast nearly 2,800 miles away recover from a major cyclone that struck Queensland state last week and from flooding from drenching rains.