People are evacuating from Kosciuszko National Park and nearby towns, as the Dunns Road bushfire continues to burn out of control.
The National Parks and Wildlife Service has closed the park and ordered it be fully evacuated by 10am on Friday.
The Dunns Road blaze is burning south of Snowy Mountains Highway in the Ellerslie Range, near Kunama and Laurel Hill towards Talbingo. It has already burned more than 131,000 hectares. The fire service was on Thursday concerned that prevailing winds could fan the fire east towards Namadgi National Park and Canberra.
Residents of Batlow and Wondlaga, as well as people that live near Blowering, were told to leave on Thursday.
The Dunns Road fire was burning at watch and act level on Friday morning.
The fire was forecast to hit Batlow on Friday afternoon, and the rural fire service is warning that the township won't be able to be defended.
Holidaymakers have also been told to evacuate areas including Jindabyne, Adaminaby, Berridale, Delegate, Providence Portal, Anglers Reach, Old Adaminaby, ahead of forecast dangerous bushfire conditions on Saturday.
A similar order has been issued for people in towns west of Kosciuszko National Park, including Tooma and Greg Greg and Khancoban.
Leave Zone – Batlow / Wondalga
— NSW RFS (@NSWRFS) January 2, 2020
Dangerous conditions in Batlow, west of Blowering Dam. If you're in this area, particularly Batlow north to Wondalga & west of Blowering Dam, leave before tomorrow. It is not safe. For road closures go to @LiveTrafficNSW#nswrfs#nswfirespic.twitter.com/GA0xJjlCQH
The Rural Fire Service had scheduled meetings at 11 am on Friday to "provide the latest information on bush fires within the Snowy Monaro local government area".
The venues were:
- Adaminaby School of Arts Building (Memorial Hall)
- Bombala RSL Club
- Cooma's Centennial Park Bandshell
- Jindabyne Memorial Hall
A total of 165 bush or grass fires are currently burning across NSW, and 47 of those are uncontained, according to police.
Many roads are closed in Kosciuszko National Park. Visit www.livetraffic.com for information on road closures and incidents.
