New bushfire warning for another Australian state as weary firefighters in Victoria battle the worst conditions since Black Summer

A cool change has eased conditions for firefighters battling an out-of-control blaze in Victoria’s Grampians following the worst bushfires since the Black Summer of 2019 – as residents in parts of NSW are on high alert.

Temperatures fell on Thursday as gusty winds from the west swept across the fires in the state’s west, which have raged for more than a week and scorched more than 70,000 hectares of bushland.

While Victoria gets some respite with a cool change, hot, dry and windy conditions will move into parts of central north-east NSW, bringing extreme fire danger on Friday.

Total fire bans have been declared for the Hunter, Greater Sydney, North Western and Northern Slopes regions.

Despite cooler conditions on Friday, Deputy Prime Minister Ben Carroll warned that dangerous fire conditions would continue on Saturday.

The mercury reached the high 30s or higher for much of Victoria on Thursday as extreme fire risks led to a total fire ban being declared across the state.

Authorities issued a flood of warnings to evacuate or seek shelter as afternoon winds arrived and fanned the flames in unpredictable directions.

The cool change had since slowed the spread of the fires as temperatures dropped, humidity rose and a small amount of rain fell, said Luke Hegarty, spokesman for the Victoria State Control Center.

A helicopter is seen heading to battle the fires in the Grampians National Park

However, six emergency warnings remained in place as of 3am (AEDT) on Friday morning.

Hegarty said in a late night update that while authorities expected the raging fires to subside, “we are not out of the woods on these fires yet.”

The update came after authorities warned homes were likely to be destroyed by the blaze as Victoria suffered its worst bushfires since Black Summer, with flames expected to rage for weeks.

The Grampians fire was significant and would likely burn for weeks even with 600 men on the ground fighting the blaze, emergency management commissioner Rick Nugent said.

‘(It’s) very difficult terrain and very dry in there. The conditions are such that it will be extremely difficult to extinguish the fire,” he said.

The fire caused significant damage to the environment, fencing, outbuildings and sheds and resulted in stock losses, Mr Nugent said.

“I wouldn’t be surprised at some point if there are housing losses,” he said.

Thousands of people were without power on Thursday evening as extreme heat and strong winds caused extensive damage to power lines, Victorian Energy Minister Lily D’Ambrosio said.

“As high winds increase, the risks of more localized disruptions will increase from tonight into tomorrow,” she said on Thursday.