Devastating

I've been following the news about the "apocalyptic" fires in Australia that have killed over 170 people and wiped entire communities off the map in a matter of hours this past weekend. This is not some "national forest wildfire" like we get here in the U.S., where "prime real estate"-dwellers are evacuated from their mansions with time to spare and all that is lost is acres of vegetation and maybe some vacant property. (And I don't mean to make light of that, because it's sad and scary and terribly unfortunate.) But this is something else entirely. It is unbelievably heartbreaking to hear these stories coming out. It's even worse to hear that some of these fires may have been started deliberately. I hope that's not the case. But if it is, I hope whoever is responsible for this can be brought to justice, and I hope that the survivors of this horrifying ordeal can get the help they need to keep their lives together. I can't imagine how awful it must have been for those people trying to escape the flames and heat, people trapped and frightened and suffocating and burning, people left behind and people lost forever. I stay away from war stories because it's all too nightmarish (if that makes me a bad person, so be it. save your blame and name-calling for someone else's blog). If these fires were the result of arson, it's nothing short of terrorism. I'm sick about it.
I'm all panicky and upset and wish I could rescue these people, shelter them, feed them, clothe them, hold them and cry with them, but there's nothing I can do from here. :(