Homes have been destroyed and residents have been told it’s “too late to leave” as “very dangerous” bushfires blaze across southeast Queensland and northern NSW.
A number of bushfires in both states have been declared emergency level with an expected life-threatening impact.
Nine cameraman Matt Coble found himself in the centre of the most destructive fire in Rappville, south of Casino in NSW, this afternoon.
“I’m stuck in the middle of it here,” he said in terrifying vision aired on Nine News Tuesday night.
“I’ve found some ground that’s a road hopefully no one comes through.
“It’s gone black again. Three (o’clock) in the afternoon and it’s pitch black.”
A local man told reporters he had lost almost everything.
“I’ve lost the bloody sheds, the house,” he said.
“We might have saved the second place but everything else is gone.”
HOMES DESTROYED IN NSW BLAZES
Three out-of-control blazes in NSW at Busbys Flat Rd, south of Casino, Long Gully Rd in Drake and Kildare Rd at Tenterfield triggered emergency warnings on Tuesday afternoon.
A fourth emergency fire warning sprung up about 6pm on Tuesday, north west of Grafton.
“The fire is burning on the northern side of the Gwydir Highway east of Jackadgery. It is burning in an easterly direction,” the NSW RFS said.
A number of homes have been damaged in the small village of Rappville as a result of the Busbys Flat Rd bushfire.
As of 6.20pm on Tuesday it had burnt through 11,000 hectares.
Carol Duncan told news.com.au her 83-year-oldfather John Duncan’s Rappville home had been destroyed.
“There are apparently several others,” she said.
In a number of tweets on Monday night, Ms Duncan recounted her father’s reaction.
“All I have is what I’m wearing. Even my walking stick was in the house,” she wrote.
LATEST WARNINGS FOR NSW
Earlier, the RFS said firefighters battling the blaze at Busbys Flat Rd faced hot and windy conditions as they tried to control the fire burning in the vicinity of Seery Rd and Phillip Swamp Rd in the Mount Belmore State Forest.
“Residents in the area of Old Tenterfield Rd near Wyan and Wineshanty it is now too late to leave,” the emergency warning states.
“Take shelter when the fire arrives and protect yourself from the heat of the fire.”
Meanwhile, residents living in the Tenterfield area have been advised to seek shelter as the fire approaches.
“There is increased fire activity on the south eastern side of the fire around the area of Ewingar,” the NSW RFS official warning stated at 6.30pm.
“A forecast wind change over the next few hours may see the fire moving in a more northerly direction.”
The RFS said embers from the blaze in Tenterfield, which has a population of just over 4000, have started spot fires to the south of the destructive Busbys Flat Rd fire.
RFS spokesman Greg Allan said conditions were not tipped to ease until later in the week.
“We’re probably not going to see any reprieve until tomorrow,” he told AAP.
“We’ve been seeing very strong westerly winds pushing that fire towards the east, still very high temperatures and very low humidity.”
Amid sweltering heat — with temperatures tipped to reach 37C on Tuesday — total fire bans have been enacted in the far northcoast, north coast, New England and northern slopes areas, which are experiencing severe fire danger.
People living in the worst-affected areas have been warned to ensure they have an escape plan.
The RFS tweeted: “Make sure you and your family know what you will do if fire threatens. Ask yourself — when will you go, what will you take and where will you go?”
Despite a cooler weather forecast from midweek — with temperatures expected to drop to the mid-20s — continued dry conditions meant fire dangers would not immediately fall away, meteorologist Jonathan How said.
“With no significant rainfall, fire dangers will remain high to very high until at least the end of the week,” he said.
LATEST WARNINGS FOR QUEENSLAND
Residents in Laidley, in the Lockyer Valley, have been told by the Queensland Fire and Emergency Services “it is now too late to leave the area”.
At least one home has been destroyed according to vision being broadcast from aircraft flying over the scene.
On Tuesday afternoon, QFES issued an emergency warning for a severe and fast-moving bushfire “expected to have a life-threatening impact on the community” in Laidley.
It was travelling in a north-easterly direction towards Douglas McInnes Drive, Railway St, Ward Court, Wilson Court, Tyrrell Court, Storr St, Leonard St, Edward St and Coates St.
Police have declared an emergency situation.
QFES said the fire approaching the rural township of Thornton, also in the Lockyer Valley, is extremely dangerous, and that fire crews may soon be unable to hold containment lines.
At 2pm on Tuesday the blaze was burning in a northerly direction from the Glen Rock National Park towards Main Camp Creek Rd.
“The fire is expected to have a significant impact on the community,” QFES said.
As at 4.40pm Tuesday, there were 26 fire engines on scene and 15 vehicles en route.
QFES has advised residents to evacuate in a northerly direction via Main Camp Creek Rd as soon as possible.
Residents in nearby Lefthand Branch have been on high alert since Monday afternoon when the blaze flared up.
They have been told to prepare to leave if conditions deteriorate.
“If you don’t have a bushfire survival plan, then please get on to our website or social media and identify what you are going to do,” QFES Deputy Commissioner Mark Roche told Nine on Tuesday.
“If you are going to take action, please take that action early.”
There are 20 fires burning across Queensland.
Many of these fires are in central Queensland, which has a severe fire danger warning.
Fire crews spent Monday afternoon battling a blaze threatening 10 homes at Mount Morgan.
That fire is burning within containment lines with no reported property loss.
Meteorologist Kimba Wong said warm, windy and dry conditions in the state’s southeast and central areas will continue on Tuesday and could remain until Wednesday.
Temperatures in some parts of the state were up to 12C above average for October on Monday.
With AAP
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