SYDNEY - A MAN was charged in an Australian court on Friday with arson causing death in connection with a wildfire that killed 21 people, police said.

The man had been moved from the small town where he was arrested to Victoria's state capital Melbourne for his own safety, police said.

He faces three charges - arson causing death, intentionally or recklessly causing a bushfire, and possessing child pornography.

A total of 181 people were killed as the worst wildfires in Australia's history swept through Victoria last weekend.

Police have launched the biggest arson investigation in history after revealing that at least two of the fires that ravaged south-eastern Victoria state were deliberately lit.

A blaze that completely destroyed the town of Marysville northeast of Melbourne, killing up to 100 people, is being treated as suspicious, police have said.

Authorities said more than 1,800 homes had been destroyed in the fires.

About 21 wildfires were still burning across Victoria on Friday but firefighters were taking advantage of cooler conditions to work on fire containment measures. -- AFP