The national toll of the bushfire has risen to 29 following the death of the 84-year-old man who sustained burns, the police said on Sunday.
A resident of the Cobargo was admitted to a hospital in Sydney the capital of New South Wales. According to Efe news reports, he passed away on Saturday morning after being admitted to the hospital since December 31, 2019.
The bushfire in Cobargo, which has 776 inhabitants, has also claimed the lives of another two people, a 63-year-old man and his 29-year-old son.
Rainfall and falling temperatures helped in recent times
Rainfall and falling temperatures in recent days have helped firefighters contain dozens of active blazes in Victoria and New South Wales, the hardest-hit state where 21 of the deaths have been recorded.
Since September 2019, the blazes have destroyed more than 80,000 square km, an area larger than Ireland or Panama, charring more than 2,000 houses.
Up to 1 billion animals, mainly mammals, birds and reptiles, are estimated to have been affected by the devastating fires, according to Australian ecologists.
(With inputs from agency)
