A bushfire continues to burn out of control near a regional Queensland town almost 18 hours after it began, with hundreds of evacuated residents told it’s still not safe to return.
More than 500 people were forced to flee Dirranbandi, six hours west of Brisbane, as a fast-moving grassfire threatened the township on two fronts on Tuesday night.
Only about 45 residents chose to stay in the area near the Queensland-NSW border, after a “leave immediately” notice was issued about 8pm on Tuesday.
As of Wednesday afternoon, firefighters were still working to contain the blaze with 1700 hectares burnt.
More than 420 homes and businesses have been left without power, according to Ergon Energy. Crews are assessing the damage but confirmed 11 electricity poles had burnt down.
“There’s some big challenges,” Queensland Premier David Crisafulli said.
“There’s loss of power, which means there’s some issues with water. There’s some real complications around communication as well.”
Heatwave warnings remain in place with temperatures in the low 40s and high 30s over coming days, according to the Bureau of Meteorology.
The premier said any resources needed would be provided.
“There’s a massive risk at this time of year, with the temperatures, with the winds, with the fuel that exists, and we want communities to know that we’ve got their back,” he said.
As of Wednesday morning, about 80 people had arrived at an evacuation centre set up at nearby St George.
More than a dozen crews and four aerial bombers battled through the night to try to contain the blaze.
There was a slight reprieve with favourable conditions late on Tuesday but residents were warned it was still unsafe to return as power, sewerage, telecommunications and other utilities had been lost.
There have been no reports of injuries or loss of homes but there has been damage to power poles and telecommunications infrastructure.
Rural Fire Service Queensland acting chief officer Ben Millington said temperatures were expected to top 42C on Wednesday, sparking concerns the Dirranbandi fires could worsen.
“Whilst the fire conditions have abated overnight and the early hours of this morning, there is potential for that to escalate again later today,” he told AAP.
The cause of the fire had not been determined but Mr Millington said it could have been lightning.
The Bureau of Meteorology issued a heatwave warning for southeast and inland Queensland on Tuesday, covering the affected Balonne Shire.
Meteorologist Miriam Bradbury warned heat would intensify across western and inland Queensland, sparking an extreme fire danger warning.
Conditions are not expected to ease for days, with another escalation predicted on Thursday as a trough moves across northern NSW to Queensland with border town Goondiwindi reaching 40C.
Mr Millington warned the next 48 hours would be the most challenging due to the risk of fresh blazes erupting.
“We are seeing elevated conditions for the next couple of days until there’s a change on Saturday,” he said.
“We are monitoring conditions very closely, not just today, but the next 48 hours for various areas across the state, including those southwestern parts.”
Fires are also burning on the Atherton Tablelands, near far northern Cairns, as well as Mount Isa in the northwest.
Mr Millington said it was the start of an expected dangerous bushfire season.
“We knew we had a lot of grassland fuel loads on the back of some of that flooding and the rain earlier this year,” he said.
“The bureau has told us we are expecting above-average temperatures and somewhat average rainfall leading into summer and that’s eventuating.”
