Firefighters are preparing for the worst day of bushfires yet after another Australian is confirmed dead and hundreds of homes are on the brink of destruction.
Christmas is likely to be cancelled for the hundreds of residents forced to flee their homes, and others have been told not to risk travelling to see friends or family.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian warned families not to travel, as the ‘unpredictable’ conditions could see fires become ‘very dangerous quickly’.
Fire officials also issued a grave warning that the escalating conditions may make it impossible for them to save those caught in the flames.
Firefighters stare down a raging bushfire at Bilpin in NSW’s Blue Mountains (pictured), next to a major road and dangerously close to homes
The Bilpin fire, on the outskirts of Sydney, is threatening homes and communities (pictured) as firefighters struggle to contain the blaze
Scorching temperatures across Australia on Saturday will see some of the worst conditions yet for the country’s exhausted firefighters.
Officials are even considering closing the Princes Highway and Hume Highway, cutting off communities across NSW and Victoria.
Roadtrippers preparing to travel to see friends or family this Christmas have been warned to delay their trips.
An emergency warning has been put on the huge 250,000 hectare Gospers Mountain fire, which is blanketing Sydney in a haze of toxic smoke.
NSW is in a state of emergency, as 101 fires rage across the state as of 7am Saturday, 50 of which are out of control and impossible to contain.
The NSW Rural Fire Service issued an emergency warning for the 250,000 hectare fire at Gospers Mountain
A farmer drives a tractor as he uses a hose to put out a fire burning in his paddock (pictured) on the outskirts of NSW’s Bilpin
A home lost to a bushfire (pictured) in Buxton as the Green Wattle Creek fire threatens homes in the south west of Sydney
‘If anyone was considering driving south of Nowra today please don’t, Ms Berejiklian warned.
‘We’re concerned the three active fires in that region could suddenly become very dangerous quickly. When things are at catastrophic level it means unpredictable wind temperatures wind conditions and also active fires.
‘Please do not do anything that’s going to put you in harm’s way. We know just a few days before Christmas family and friends are getting together.
‘We know it might be stressful to change your plans. We would much rather everybody was safe and not in harm’s way.’
Across NSW on Saturday morning there were 101 fires (pictured), with 50 deemed out of control
The Cudlee Creek fire destroys a plot of land at Woodside (pictured), just 40 minutes outside of Adelaide, on Friday
The NSW Rural Fire Service said there had been ‘an increase of fire activity north of Lithgow’, and that people should immediately seek shelter.
There is a catastrophic fire danger for Greater Sydney, Illawarra, Shoalhaven and Southern Ranges, according to the RSF.
A grave warning was issued by NSW Rural Fire Service Deputy Commissioner Rob Rogers, with winds expected to pick up on Saturday morning and fan the flames towards people’s homes.
‘We’ll do our best but don’t rely on that,’ he said.
‘Don’t expect a plane to be overhead straight away and don’t expect a helicopter. Don’t wait for a warning.
‘Think about what you are going to do if you are in the path of the fires.’
A Woodside resident battles a fire (pictured) as it crosses Ridge Road at Woodside in the Adelaide Hills in Adelaide on Friday
In South Australia, a terrifying blaze sits less than 40 minutes from the centre of Adelaide.
A person has been killed and an unknown number of homes have been destroyed after the blaze at Cudlee Creek in the Adelaide Hills burned through more than 17,000 hectares.
Conditions are becoming increasingly dangerous for firefighters and residents alike, after 200 blazes broke out on Friday alone.
Four firefighters are being treated for burns and smoke inhalation, while three police officers were injured in a fire south of Adelaide.
South Australian Premier Steven Marshall confirmed a person was killed in a car crash after it hit a tree eat of Lameroo, near the Murraylands fires.