Thousands of locals and holidaymakers are trapped on a beach in Victoria as blazes close in.
Fires rapidly grew on Monday night due to winds and lightning strikes, ripping through more than 200,000 hectares in Victoria’s East Gippsland, it was estimated early on Tuesday morning.
The coastal holiday town of Mallacoota, in the state’s far east, is among those under direct threat.
‘We have three strike teams in Mallacoota that will be looking after 4000 people on the beach as the fire goes into that particular town,’ Emergency Management Commissioner Andrew Crisp said.
‘We are naturally very concerned about communities that have become isolated and to get an appreciation about other losses there could be we’ll be putting helicopters up doing reconnaissance flights.’
The sky turned black on Tuesday morning in Mallacoota as firefighters prepared to battle the blaze.
One resident wrote on Twitter: ‘The darkness in Mallacoota is utterly surreal. Not far off pitch black when this should be a beautiful sunny morning.’
‘This is the worst waiting now. Pitch black. The roar of… something. No visible fire but we (and our CFA neighbor) are sure it’s coming.’
The sky turned black on Tuesday morning in Mallacoota as firefighters prepared to battle the blaze
A family of five were forced to run for their lives after their holiday house (pictured before the fire) was surrounded by ferocious flames and plumes of smoke
In New South Wales, a family of five were forced to run for their lives after their holiday house was surrounded by ferocious flames and plumes of smoke.
Tracey Corbin-Matchett, her husband and their three children were forced to flee the two-storey timber abode at Tarbuck Bay, about three hours north of Sydney, on Monday.
‘My family and I just ran for our lives through bush,’ Ms Corbin-Matchett wrote on Twitter with footage of the blaze.
‘Huge bushfire trapping the five of us in the holiday house we’re staying at. We don’t know what’s left but so grateful for the NSW RFS.’
Ms Corbin-Matchett said the family were returning home to Sydney in ‘shock’.
‘My kids were screaming. The most frightening experience of my life,’ she wrote on Twitter.
Ms Corbin-Matchett said the fire started from a fallen power line and spread rapidly.
‘There was no time [to evacuate]. The house is on a hill and the fire started at the entrance to the long driveway of house, fallen power lines in high wind, trapping us in.’
‘Tried to drive out then had to reverse the car and run on foot.’
Tracey Corbin-Matchett, her husband and their three children were forced to flee the two-storey timber abode at Tarbuck Bay, about three hours north of Sydney, on Monday. ‘My family and I just ran for our lives through bush,’ Ms Corbin-Matchett wrote on Twitter with footage of the blaze
The horrific footage comes as the NSW RFS released a dire warning for residents and holidaymakers on the New South Wales South Coast.
They said members of bushfire-prone communities near Batemans Bay and Bega should move to large towns away from bushland by 8am.
‘There are 7 dangerous fires burning between Batemans Bay and the Victorian border on the South Coast,’ the RFS said.
‘These fires have moved quickly this morning beyond the predicted fire spread for today.
‘They pose a serious threat to life. Do not be in the path of these fires. Avoid bushland areas and if the path is clear move to larger towns or beaches to take shelter.’
The horrific footage comes as the NSW RFS released a dire warning for residents and holidaymakers on the New South Wales South Coast
Extreme fire danger is forecast for the Southern Ranges, Illawarra and ACT on New Year’s Eve while surrounding regions – including Sydney, the Hunter and the far south coast – are set for severe fire danger.
Strong westerly winds are expected, pushing fires east and placing coastal communities and holiday hotspots under threat.
Total fire bans are in place for more than half of the state’s 21 fire districts including Sydney. Five blazes were on Tuesday at emergency level – one in the Snowy Valleys and the remainder around Bega and Batemans Bay.
The RFS on Tuesday said those fires ‘pose a serious threat to life’ and motorists have been advised to avoid all non-essential travel, while stretches of the Princes Highway and Monaro Highway are shut.
Almost 100 blazes continue to burn across NSW, with dozens uncontained.
In Sydney on Tuesday, strong dry winds, poor air quality and temperatures touching 33C are expected while the city’s west will surpass 40C.
Fire prediction maps suggest the Green Wattle Creek fire, which has already scorched 227,000 hectares, may cross the Hume Highway near Bowral.