MELBOURNE - Much-needed rain fell across the Australian state of Victoria Tuesday, easing the danger of more deadly bush fires, officials said.

Fire authorities, however, cautioned residents to stay vigilant for fires, the Australian Broadcasting Corp. reported. Meteorologists said the rain falling on fire-prone areas was especially welcome because the precipitation was steady rather than coming in severe storms.

"There's no storms around, so no lightning activity which is a good thing … it won't generate any more fires," forecaster Peter Blake said, adding that up to seven-tenths of an inch of rain had fallen at Mt. Hope in Victoria's Werribee River area, while other parts of the state had received up to a half-inch of precipitation.

Mike Goode of the state Department of Sustainability and Environment told the broadcaster that four major fires burning for more than three weeks did not spread Tuesday.

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