Thousands without power as wildfires spread

Wildfires destroyed eight houses and cut electricity lines in southern Australia, plunging much of Victoria state into chaos as hundreds of thousands were left without power, a fire official said today.

A fire caused by a lightning strike west of Melbourne destroyed one home last night, while seven others were razed in a massive blaze that has blackened 66,717 acres in the state’s northeast, according to Pat Groenhout, a Victoria state emergency spokesman. The fire also cut a main electricity circuit, plunging some 200,000 homes and businesses into darkness and affecting hundreds of traffic signals and suburban train services. Several people were caught in lifts when power went out in some buildings and had to be rescued, said Metropolitan Ambulance Service spokesman Phil Cullen.