And as a presidential candidate, he sounded early warnings about the dangers of Vladimir Putin and a resurgent Russia and presaged the increasingly tense relationship between the U.S. and the People’s Republic of China.

"We're expecting to see extreme fire danger across almost the entire state," Luke Hegarty, a spokesman for Victoria's State Control Centre, said.

Officials say there is no immediate danger to residents as volcanic activity is currently limited to a confined area of Hawaii Volcanoes National Park.

Meanwhile, reports continue to roll in about the dangers of raw milk during this time — and it’s not only humans who are at risk.

Denham said the data indicated there were children with special needs who were "falling through the gaps" and were "in danger of being out of sight of the education system".