The first significant rain for months will fall on fire-ravaged parts of Australia today as a low-pressure system sweeps across the east.

Downpours have already helped to extinguish 32 bushfires in New South Wales as the number of blazes fell from 120 to 88 on Thursday morning.
Between Thursday and Sunday, the Bureau of Meteorology expects between 30 and 80mm of rain in the east of NSW. It means the end may be in sight for exhausted firefighters who have battled deadly fires for more than three months.
A total of 28 people died have died in the horror blazes and more than 2,000 homes have been destroyed. The rain will give firefighters some much-needed respite after months of battling ferocious blazes.
The rain has also hit Victoria. Melbourne was drenched last night as the suburb of St Albans saw a month’s worth of rain – 77mm – in just half an hour.