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Water bombers from New South Wales have been sent to assist weary firefighters who are spending a fifth day battling a massive blaze in Perth's north.
Key points:
- New South Wales has sent a Boeing 737 waterbomber to help fight bushfires in WA
- Two emergency warnings are active in Yanchep and Collie, in the state's south-west
- The Yanchep fire has burnt through almost 12,000 hectares since Wednesday
About 400 firefighters are battling a fire near Two Rocks, about 60 kilometres north of Perth, that has torn through almost 12,000 hectares of land.
Bushfire warnings cover a 50-kilometre stretch of coast including the towns of Guilderton, Seabird and Woodridge.
Meanwhile, another emergency warning is active for a fire burning near Collie in the state's south-west.
Australia's biggest firefighting aircraft, a Boeing 737 air tanker, can hold 15,000 litres of water and is standing by at RAAF Base Pearce after flying in from NSW overnight.
Premier Mark McGowan said he was keen to see the plane used to battle both fires.
"It will be bombing fires around the state over the next couple of days — clearly the weather conditions are extreme and therefore it requires every effort put into dealing with a serious situation," he said.
WA's Fire and Emergency Services Commissioner Darren Klemm said the plane will stay in WA until at least Monday night, but no decision has been made on whether or not it will be used on the fire ground.
"I'll be very happy if it sits on the ground for the whole time it's here and we don't need to use it," he said.
"But if we need to use it, we've got it there."
Commissioner Klemm said there was a high risk of further flare ups with more wind changes and a forecast maximum temperature of 40 degrees Celsius.
"Things are reasonably benign at the moment in terms of the wind, but we're going to have difficulties again with the strength of the winds," he said.
Arson has been ruled out as the cause of the blaze but the Commissioner would not elaborate further, saying the investigation was ongoing.
He also confirmed a firefighter was injured by a falling tree overnight.
Fire and Emergency Services Minister Fran Logan said firefighters had managed to save 6,000 homes.
"The work that all of the firies and all of the volunteers have put in over the last few days is nothing short of remarkable," he said.
"If you look at the map of where the fires have gone, it is absolutely astonishing that we haven't lost more than one house."
Collie emergency bushfire
Another large bushfire is tearing through dense jarrah forest near the town of Collie about 200km south of Perth.
The fire near Yourdamung Lake has burnt through 7,400 hectares since it began on Saturday afternoon.
An emergency warning is in place for people in an area bounded by Baroda Road to the north, Norm Road to the south, Collie-Tallanalla Road to the west and Collie-Williams Road to the east.
An advice alert extends to the Collie townsite, about 30km south of the blaze.
More than 50 firefighters are battling the out-of-control blaze which is moving fast in a south-westerly direction.
Yourdamung Road retreat owner Russell Tierney said it was the first time he had stayed and defended a property under threat from fire.
"I'm feeling real stressed, but my mates are here to give us a hand so it's all good," he said.
"It was hairy before, ash started falling on my place. That's when I started calling mates up saying come around with your tankers.
"There's a lot of bush around here — this was only (backburned) last year but it's burning still now anyway.
"It's dry. It's very dry out there so it will burn."
The fire has blanketed the nearby port city of Bunbury with a thick layer of smoke.
The smoke has also impacted on other towns in WA's south-west, with a smoke alert also current for Busselton, Margaret River and Donnybrook.
Yanchep fire will burn for days
Authorities warn while the firefighters may be able to control the blaze if favourable weather conditions persist, it could burn for more than a week.
One home, a petrol station and some buildings associated with Yanchep National Park were lost when the bushfire started on Wednesday but, since then, no other homes have been lost.
Stephen Brown stayed to defend his and his neighbours property at Breakwater Estate.
"I think without all of the firies on the crew, there'd be nothing left in here. They did a brilliant job and I think they saved a lot of houses in here," he said.
"At one stage they were standing with their back to the fire and just hosing down the embers because they couldn't stop it."
A total fire ban remains in place across the Perth metropolitan area today.
Topics: bushfire, disasters-and-accidents, perth-6000, two-rocks-6037, yanchep-6035, wa
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