A fire fighter has been arrested by Australian police after allegedly lighting seven fires south of Sydney including one which he returned to fight with his volunteer fire brigade.
His arrest yesterday evening followed that of three teenagers accused of deliberately starting bushfires in Brisbane that forced scores of people to flee their homes earlier in the day.
A second man appeared in court in Sydney today charged with starting at least 12 fires 80 miles north of Sydney over the past three weeks.
Six lives have been lost and nearly 700 homes destroyed by hundreds of fires which have been burning across eastern Australia for the past month. The authorities fear conditions will worsen as temperatures climb over summer amid a crippling drought
