After months of flames and accompanying devastation, many parts of Australia finally saw some of the rain they so desperately needed in the second week of January.

But it didn’t come without a cost. The rains were heavy, the storms fierce, and already-parched land meant flash flooding was common. And while some fires were contained, many still rage on.

While people danced in the rain in Sydney, ash and sludge washed into rivers and waterways killing hundreds of thousands of native fish. And as if the situation couldn’t get any more “totally Australia,” workers at an animal park north of Sydney had to fight alligators back with brooms when floods swelled their enclosure.

To top it off, according to The Guardian, wildlife officials have warned that residents near Sydney could soon experience a “bonanza” of funnel-web spiders. And yes, they bite.

Unfortunately, they also contain “one of the most toxic venoms of any spider,” according to the Australian Museum.

Australia just can’t catch a break.

Still, the rain was needed since the fires proved to be uncontrollable by human actions alone.

Naturally, firefighters had become exhausted and needed any help they could get from mother nature to relieve them of even just a bit of mental and physical fatigue. But now other emergency workers are needed to help with the waterlogged parts of the country.

The state of New South Wales saw some of the worst bushfires and their Rural Fire Service shared a video of the rain, noting “Relief is here for a number of firefighters working across NSW. Although this rain won’t extinguish all the fires, it will certainly go a long way towards containment.”

But some of the rainstorms were also extreme weather events, producing golf-ball-sized, tree-shredding hail and lightning.

Still, they were mostly welcomed, even if they were only a temporary reprieve. However, that means as soon as they ended, the fires raged once more.

“They are by no means out. But we have seen a reduction, and it has given some crews a chance to take a break before we see the possibility of fire activity over NSW increasing,” Ben Shepherd from the NSW Rural Fire Service told The Guardian of the fires.

And he was right – the number of fires has increased once more, though the rain did help contain some of them.

In fact, some of the most effective steps for putting out the fires for good (bulldozers and backburns) will actually require the ground to be dry.

January has been a mishmash of seemingly apocalyptic weather (and spiders!) for Australia. It’s still summer there, but few people can go outside in areas around the coast due to the horrendous air quality.

People are also dealing with the duststorms of the drought-stricken land in western New South Wales.

Will it all be over soon?

In a word, no.

The fires rage on. The air is toxic. The animals are dying. People are having a hard time seeing the end of this catastrophe.

As of January 14, 2020, the 2019-2020 Australian fires burned roughly 46 million acres of land, destroyed over 5,900 buildings (including 2,779 homes), and killed at least 34 people. Experts estimate that one BILLION animals have been killed and that some endangered species are likely now extinct. The financial ramifications are expected to top $4 billion.

Be sure to scroll down below to see the latest from Melbourne following the rains.

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Source: The Guardian, Smithsonian Magazine, Bored Panda