Fire continued to ravage across southern Australia Tuesday, threatening local communities and killing at least 181 so far. [Xinhua]

"The response from the Australian public has been incredible," the organization's Chief Executive Officer Robert Tichner said.

The Salvation Army's bushfire appeal had received 2 million dollars on Monday, and expected to hit 3 million dollars by Tuesday.

Big businesses in Australia also made pledges, with Tabcorp leading the donations at 2 million dollars, followed by the country's four big banks - ANZ, Commonwealth, National Australia and Westpac - which have contributed 1 million dollars each.

Prime Minister Kevin Rudd announced Tuesday that outgoing Victoria state police chief Christine Nixon will be responsible for coordinating all local, state and Commonwealth agencies to help rebuild fire-affected communities, national media reported.

Rudd also warned that the rebuilding of the communities was not an easy task. "It is not just the next day or two, it is the next year or two, the rebuilding of these communities," he said.

The prime minister reiterated his vehement condemnation against the arsonists Tuesday, saying that dealing with arsonists was a matter of "grave urgency" and there was no excuse for it.

"This as I said yesterday is simply murder on a grand scale," he said. "Let us attend to this unfinished business of the nation and come to grips with this evil thing."

Rudd said Monday that if the Victorian fires had been deliberately lit it would amount to "mass murder." The arsonists who set deadly fires in Victoria state could be charged with murder, Australian federal attorney-general Robert McClelland said the same day.

Police have established a taskforce of up to 100 police to investigate how the fires started.

The investigation will focus on whether the fires were deliberately lit, identify any offenders and investigate the circumstances surrounding those killed, ABC News report said.

However, Australian Victorian police said it may take a year to fully investigate the weekend fires in the state.

(Xinhua News Agency February 10, 2009)