In New South Wales, Australia's most populous state, a historically destructive bushfire season has taken a massive toll, but for the first time in 240 days, the state's firefighters have no fires to battle.
Every single grass and bushfire has been not just contained, but extinguished, according to the New South Wales Rural Fire Service.
At least 34 people are known to have died in the fires, including six firefighters — three NSW RFS volunteers and three American air crew members.
Overall, the fires have left an area the size of South Korea scorched and burned, and likely more than a billion animals have died.
"This was worse than anything our models simulated," climate scientists Dr. Benjamin Sanderson said to BBC News.
In one weekend, more than 30 fires in the state were put out. Thanks to the rains, firefighters were able to make considerable progress and on February 13, the NSW RFS declared all grass and bushfires in the state contained.
"For the first time since early July 2019, there is currently no active bush or grass fires in #NSW," the service tweeted. "That's more than 240 days of fire activity for the state."
While not as hard-hit as New South Wales, Victoria has seen more than 3,500 fires since November 1, destroying more than 1.5 million hectares. South Australia's Country Fire Service has also reported that no major fires are currently burning.
