Australia hit by power cuts

The Australian state of Victoria has suffered severe power cuts, causing major disruption to homes and businesses in Melbourne.

It is thought that a large bushfire damaged power lines linking the state to the national grid, causing power cuts to around 200,000 people.

The country's second largest city has seen power lost in hospitals and offices and around 1,000 traffic lights have been knocked out of action.

"There are power outages across Victoria from the border with New South Wales state to Melbourne," a police spokesman told Reuters.

"The cause is bushfires and heavy demand. It's a stinking hot day and the demand is overloading transformers."

Melbourne is currently experiencing 39C heat, made all the more unbearable by the inability to operate air conditioners.

It is not known when full power will be restored but it is thought that many services, such as the city's trains, are able to operate on lower voltages, causing a reduction in operations without wholesale cancellations.