Bushfire in NSW: Residents at Abernethy, near Newcastle, told it’s too late to leave
- Bushfire burning in NSW
- Residents told too late to leave
Australians living close to a major city have been told it’s too late to leave as a bushfire continues to burn out of control in the area.
Residents were warned on Tuesday afternoon it was too dangerous to travel out of the Abernethy area, which is an hour-long drive from Newcastle, in NSW.
‘A bush fire is burning in the Kearsley area, moving in a southerly direction towards Abernethy,’ NSW RFS said in a Twitter post.
‘People in the Abernethy area, it is too late to leave.’
Warnings were issued for Stockdale, Iguana Creek and Glenaladale between the Princes Highway and Beverleys Road by Victoria Emergency at 5.59am earlier today.
Residents were warned on Tuesday it is too late to leave the Abernethy area, which is an hour-long drive from Newcastle, in NSW
Three out-of-control fires are raging in the area, fanned by wild weather, with at least one home destroyed.
They include Duffy Rd, Briagolong, where residents have been ordered to seek shelter as it’s now too late to evacuate after conditions worsened.
Bushfire warnings have also been issued south of the border in NSW, with total fire bans in place across the entire Greater Sydney and Hunter regions, Far South Coast, Northern Slopes, North Western, Upper Central West Plains, Lower Central West Plains and Central Ranges.
‘Extreme and high fire danger is forecast across NSW,’ a NSW Rural Fire Service alert states.
It comes as dozens of fires rage across Victoria and NSW with hot and windy conditions forecast for much of Australia’s south-east.
Authorities said the firefront in the Gippsland region doubled in size overnight.
The emergency level bushfire at Duffy Rd, Briagolong, is fast approaching the Princes Highway, with high winds increasing the speed of the fire.
Residents in Briagolong, Cobbannah, Culloden, Moornapa, Woolenook have been told it’s now too late to leave.
‘This fire is threatening homes and lives,’ the latest alert states.
‘It is too late to leave the area safely, so you must take shelter now.
Authorities in Victoria will be on high alert for the next 24 hours. Pictured is the Gippsland region blanketed in smoke
You are in danger and need to act immediately to survive. Leaving now would be deadly.’
Residents in Loch Sport and Seacombe have also been issued with similar warnings.
‘Firefighters have been unable to stop the fire, and it has now crossed Longford-Loch Sport Road and is moving towards the southeast,’ the alert said.
At least one home was destroyed in Briagolong on Monday.
Wild winds from a predicted cold front have made firefighting efforts difficult.
The biggest firefront is 5000 hectares in difficult terrain north of Maffra in the Briagolong, Culloden, Moornapa and Stockdale regions.
A large mass of Victoria from Marysville in the Yarra Valley through to the NSW border are also on ‘watch and act’ warnings.