Bushfire relief: How you can help frontline services and what actions hinder efforts

Heartbreaking footage of families losing everything as bushfires rage throughout parts of the country has left many anxious to know how they can help those affected. Key points: Monetary donations can often be one of the most useful ways to help services like charities, fire brigades and animal rescue Charities like Givit can help facilitate the distribution of material goods, while avoiding the donation of unwanted, random items People are encouraged not to drop donated items off to affected areas as this can sometimes hamper efforts Lives have been lost, homes and business have been destroyed and thousands of people are stranded or in limbo as fires burn in parts of Victoria, New South Wales, South Australia, Tasmania and Western Australia. That's why monetary donations can often be one of the most useful ways to help but, as Victorian Emergency Services Minister Lisa Neville warned, "there are fake charities out there". For those with money to give, donations to the Salvation Army, the Australian Red Cross and state-based brigades like the New South Wales Rural Fire Service, Victoria's Country Fire Authority and South Australia's Country Fire Service will go towards bushfire efforts. The Red Cross say it will gratefully accept goods like clothing at its retail store, where the funds raised from selling the items can go towards their work, including bushfire relief.