SYDNEY (Reuters) - Tens of thousands of residents across Australia's Victoria state remained without power on Wednesday after wild weather knocked down transmission lines, forcing a major power plant to disconnect from the grid, while strong winds fanned bushfires. AGL's Loy Yang A power station, responsible for about a third of the state's power, had to shut down on Tuesday afternoon impacting half a million properties, which officials said was one of the largest outages in Victoria's history. Some properties were completely destroyed by fire with the exact number to be confirmed after fire crews finish their rescue efforts. Firefighters are battling to contain three bushfires, but better weather conditions could help crews to contain the fires quickly, Heffernan said. Australia's weather bureau forecast milder conditions on Wednesday with temperatures in the low to mid-20 degree Celsius (68°F) and moderate winds, but warned the risk was not over yet.

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Persons: AGL's Loy Yang, Clare O'Neil, We've, O'Neil, Jason Heffernan, Heffernan, Renju Jose, Bill Berkrot Organizations: SYDNEY, Mobile, Federal Home Affairs, ABC, Firefighters Locations: Australia's Victoria, Melbourne, Hotham, Victoria's, Victoria, Sydney