$ 1.4 Bln Pleged to Help With Australia Massive Fires

Reserve soldiers were deployed in areas devastated by the massive fires in three states in Australia this morning, after harsh weekend, at a time when the government pledged to allocate 1.4 billion dollars over two years for relief efforts and compensation for losses caused by the months-long crisis.

Catastrophic forest fires have turned vast tracts of land into charred foci and destroyed an area the size of Ireland's island, according to official figures, while the authorities have warned that the disaster could last for weeks or months.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison, whose government has been criticized for its slow response to the emergency, has pledged 1.4 billion dollars in taxpayer money to create a national rescue fund.

"There is a long way to go and we will be by these communities every step of the way when they rebuild," Morrison said.

Firefighters, joined by new teams from the United States and Canada, have benefited from rain and lower temperatures to combat uncontrolled fires before a new rise in temperature, forecasts forecast later this week.

In the largest mobilization of its kind for the reserve soldiers, military teams have been deployed to the areas of eastern Australia to assist the emergency services to survey the damage, restore electricity, and deliver food, water and fuel supplies to isolated communities.

For the first time in Australian history, the government has also deployed a medical aid team that it usually sends to other countries for post-disaster assistance, in order to relief evacuees. NASA images have shown smoke billowing from Australia's east coast drifting over New Zealand and even reaching South America in less than a week.

Amid catastrophic situation in Austraila because of expanding forest fires, the national gallery announced that it was closing its doors to protect its art.

The quality of air in Australia's capital was the worst of any major city in the world on Monday as smoke drifted in from fires, prompted shops and offices to tell staff to stay home, according to Reuters.

The National Gallery of Australia said it would not open on Monday in part to protect works being shown in its Matisse and Picasso exhibition, including some borrowed from the Musée Picasso in Paris.

"Closing our doors allows us to mitigate any risk to the public, staff and works of art on display," the gallery said.

The exhibition includes Picasso's portraits of his wife, Olga, and lover, Marie-Therese, both on loan from Paris, it said.

Canberra health authorities earlier warned the city's 400,000 residents to avoid outside physical activity. Many businesses and government departments, including the Department of Home Affairs, ordered non-essential staff to stay home, media reported.