Firefighters have taken the upper hand in the battle against a series of uncontrolled bushfires raging in the nation's southeast but several towns remain under threat.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
An emergency evacuation warning is in place in Victoria's Grampians National Park for a blaze ignited by a lightning strike earlier in the week.
Residents of several towns, including Bellfield, Halls Gap and Fyans Creek, have been told to leave immediately.
But the threat to the nearby communities of Lake Fyansm Pomonal, Mafeking, and Watgania was downgraded to watch and act not safe to return late on Saturday.
A blaze at Bullengarook, northwest of Melbourne, was also downgraded to a watch and act, a State Control Centre spokesman said.
A watch and act warning remains in place for Bornes Hill, Grampians, Jimmy Creek, Mirranatwa, Victoria Valley, Barton, Jallukur and Londonderry.
A relief centre for evacuated Grampian residents has opened at Alexandra Oval Community Centre in Ararat and the Grampians Community Health building in Stawell.
Firefighters have slowed the spread of the Grampian blaze on Saturday after it tripled in size overnight but authorities have warned it will not be contained for weeks.
Incident Controller Aaron Kennedy said the blaze had grown to 29,000 hectares and travelled is just south of Halls Gap and Belfield Dam.
"This fire is located in very steep and difficult terrain so our ability to fight this fire directly is quite challenging," he said.
"The landscape is very dry."
More than 300 firefighters and multiple aircraft are battling the blaze.
Mr Kennedy said 24 months of rainfall deficiency in western Victoria, particularly in the Grampians National Park, meant fires spread quickly.
"Suppression is very challenging and we are doing our best under the current conditions to try and contain those fires and really keep communities safe," he said.
Authorities have evacuated many people from the path of the blaze but they believe up to 100 could still be in the fire zone.
"Our intentions are, with the help of Victoria Police, to move those people out of Halls Gap, out of the fire's path and into our relief centres.
The Grampians National Park is closed to visitors.
A bushfire in The Gurdies in South Gippsland has also been downgraded to an advice warning.
"That fire is still not under control but conditions have been more favourable," the control centre spokesman said.
"That's allowed us to start the work of containing that fire.
"There is no significant fire spread today ... and there will be more work to control that fire but the community should still be aware."
Firefighters in Western Australia and NSW have brought scores of fires under control in recent days, but temperatures in the high 30s and low 40s are expected to hit the west coast over the weekend before pushing eastward.
Elevated fire dangers are forecast for the south of WA with dry thunderstorms possible for western parts.
Heatwave conditions are also persisting across the state's midwest affecting Mingenew and Coral Bay as well as the Kimberley and Pilbara regions.
Above-average temperatures are predicted for the 2024-25 summer in many parts of the nation, according to long-range forecasts from the Bureau of Meteorology, underscoring a grim outlook from emergency services.
With hot temperatures expected to persist into Christmas, Victoria's Country Fire Authority has urged people to plan ahead.
"We know people have a lot to think about this festive season but taking a few minutes to plan and prepare could save the lives of you and those you love," chief fire officer Jason Heffernan said.
"On hot, dry and windy days, have a back-up location to visit that is not in a high-risk bushfire area."
Australian Associated Press
