New measures to deal with Australian arsonists
Friday, 4 January 2002 19:34
The New South Wales Government in Australia has announced new measures to deal with juveniles guilty of arson. Under the new measures, young offenders will be ordered to visit fire victims in hospital and to attend special burns units.
They will also be ordered to help clean up affected areas. The measures were introduced following the recent spate of forest fires in the suburbs of Sydney. 25 people have so far been arrested for arson. 16 of them were between the ages of nine and 16.
10,000 firefighters in Australia have been continuing with their effort to tackle bush fires that have been fanned by dry winds. The fires are burning along fronts totalling about 1,200 miles.
Two of the biggest blazes are along the Blue Mountains west of Australia's biggest city, Sydney, and on south coast of New South Wales. With more than a hundred homes destroyed, the cost of the damage has been put at ¤40m.
