Fierce bushfires continue to encroach on homes in NSW, as thick smoke blankets Sydney again for the fourth day in a row.
At least one property has been engulfed by the Three Mile fire in the Wisemans Ferry area on Sydney’s northern outskirts, with other buildings under immediate threat.Another two fires — one at Gospers Mountain and another at Paterson in the Lower Hunter — are burning at emergency level.
Firefighters are battling the Three Mile blaze on the north side of the Hawkesbury which continues to intensify.
Smoke from the blaze, which is burning across more than 5,800 hectares is billowing across into other regions including Sydney City.It is currently rated at watch and act level by the NSW Rural Fire Service.
Winds are causing significant smoke from Mangrove Mountain and further east towards the Central Coast.
People in the areas of Mangrove Creek, Greengrove, Lower Mangrove, Upper Mangrove, Central Macdonald, Lower Macdonald have been told to activate their bushfire survival plan.
The RFS is warning that embers are likely around Mangrove Creek and further east into areas around Wisemans Ferry Road and Peats Ridge.
Elsewhere, the bushfire burning for weeks at Gospers Mountain jumped back to emergency level this afternoon, with properties under threat in the Colo Heights area.
A new emergency level fire has also developed at Paterson in the Lower Hunter region, where residents in the area of Red Hill and Dun Creek have been told it is too late to leave.
A ferocious blaze continues down the South Coast at Currowan, which has now razed through almost 50,000 hectares of land.
Smoke risk continues
Meanwhile, Sydney and surrounds have been blanketed again in thick, hazardous smoke in what social media users are calling the “new norm”.
One Twitter used said: “We are fearing this is going to the norm during all the summer.”
Another said: “Bushfire smoke is gradually becoming the new norm for Sydney. Which is scary and heartbreaking.”
The NSW Bureau of Meteorology tagged city the “brown town” due to the smoke haze, which it said will continue into Thursday.abc