Over 100 fires are burning in Queensland as temperatures rise above 40ºC in parts of the state.
On Wednesday, areas south of the Whitsundays including Capricornia, Central Highlands, and Coalfields were declared catastrophic.
Residents of Gracemere near Rockhampton were forced to evacuate as fast-moving fires developed and threatened their town.
The Queensland Fire and Emergency Services have been battling fires since the weekend. Commissioner Katarina Carroll said that in some areas affected on Saturday, the fire danger remained too high and the teams haven't had a chance to enter and assess the damage.
These pictures show the situation our friends at @QldFES were battling overnight at Carnarvon Gorge. Paramedics were on standby. #CarnarvonGorge https://t.co/uvguZWizO3
Cairns experienced three consecutive days with temperatures above 40 degrees, while Mackay had six consecutive days over 35ºC.
Bruce Gunn from the Bureau of Meteorology told the ABC that in Rockhampton "catastrophic conditions" were sustained for three and a half hours. "Certainly something outside our experience," he said.
Fire warnings in some areas have already been downgraded but authorities on Thursday alerted residents in Deepwater, Baffle Creek, Rules Beach, and Oyster Creek to evacuate.
Fire has also been spotted in North Stradbroke Island.
A plume of smoke from North Stradbroke Island with QAS on standby for our firefighter colleagues. This is a timely reminder for everyone to take care during this period of extreme heat and fire danger and heed the warnings issued by Emergency Services. #NorthStradbrokeIsland https://t.co/0FofZlRpu6
Fire crews from NSW have travelled north of the border to help the firefighters and volunteers on the ground.
With fires continuing to develop across Wide Bay and Central Queensland, we’d like to remind people what they need to take when evacuating. • Remember your prescription medications AND scripts, you can’t get repeat medication without these. https://t.co/w9Y07mj3Y7
More QAS staff are being deployed to the fire zones with the situation being continuously assessed. Our thoughts are with everyone affected by this event. https://t.co/qniY6udKvi
Firefighters are also on the lookout for animals that were affected by the fires.
We’re here to help all Queenslanders 🐶 #qldbushfires
How lovely is this! @NSWRFS volunteers saving a sheep that had fled the Deepwater bushfire and got bogged. The fire had burned to just behind that dam. @abcbrisbane @BreakfastNews https://t.co/7zuBxdr0yH
Here's a view of the smoke in Rockhampton.
And here's a satellite view of the bushfire.
Live blog: 'Australian fighting spirit' saves Qld town from bushfire as conditions ease https://t.co/aO9kJdvVxx
Some residents have been able to return to their homes and inspect the damage.
