(CNN) -- Investigators in Australia believe some of the deadly wildfires ravaging dry southeastern bushland may have been set, a conclusion prompting Australia's prime minister to call such acts "mass murder." Wildfires are an annual event in Australia, but the unprecedented carnage wrought by the fast-moving infernos, called the worst ever by police, have shaken and surprised the nation. This year, a combination of factors has made them especially intense: a drought, dry bush and one of the most powerful heat waves in memory. And, finally, officials think some of the fires might have been deliberately lit. The blazes have so far spared major urban areas but have swept across nearly 200,000 hectares (500,000 acres) of bushland in Victoria, leading some firefighters and police to describe the destruction "as something of a holocaust," said state police inspector Phil Shepherd, who reported that two towns -- Marysville and Kinglake -- have been "completely wiped out."

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[YKTV] According to those who barely escaped the carnage, many people lost their lives while trying to protect themselves from the wildfire which appeared out of nowhere. Some attempted to jump in pools to escape being burned only to be boiled alive by the intense heat. Others attempted to flee in cars but ultimately met their death when theirs tires melted and gas evaporated leaving them trapped.

Our thoughts and prayers are with you!! Soooo sad.

-young