Southern California has befallen an explosive wildfire, which has engulfed an estimated 90,000 acres. The fire started 65 miles northwest of Los Angeles in a canyon. At 4:00 AM that morning (December 5th), the fire had spread within the limits of the city of Ventura, which has a population which reaches above 100,000. People in the areas threatened by the fire are, of course being evacuated and one person has died in a car crash during the evacuation process. The fire has also left people without power or water in their homes as infrastructure gets consumed in the blaze. A poor mix of remarkably low humidity and sustained winds over 30 miles per hour can be blamed for the volatile nature of this fire.

Australia has become the 26th nation to legalize same-sex marriage. The vote to pass the Marriage Amendment Bill of 2017 succeeded with applause from the Australian parliament. Previously, the topic of same-sex marriage was a hotly debated topic, but a recent referendum that voted overwhelmingly with legalization settled the debate. The first same-sex marriages in Australia are expected to begin occurring in January.