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January 24, 2026 — 3:30pm
Residents in parts of the Otway Ranges are being warned it is too late to leave and to find immediate shelter after a bushfire that began on January 7 flared in extreme heat.
People in six forest towns south-west of Colac – Beech Forest, Carlisle River, Charleys Creek, Ferguson, Gellibrand and Wyelangta – should seek shelter indoors, Forest Fire Management Victoria warns in its latest alert.
The northernmost of two bushfires burning in the Otways National Park, at Carlisle River, is travelling from the intersection of Carlisle River Road and Walls-Skinner Track in a southerly direction.
Fire is threatening homes and lives, and it is too late to leave the area. Roads through the emergency area are closed.
Firefighters say the blaze breached containment lines on a day of extreme fire danger in the south-west, where the temperature is expected to reach 39 degrees in nearby Colac.
More than 30 vehicles are responding to the fire, which has already burned through more than 5000 hectares of national park in two-and-a-half weeks.
Another bushfire in the national park at Kennedy’s Creek remains contained, having burnt through more than 3000 hectares.
Today is a total fire ban day across Victoria, and the Country Fire Authority has also just announced another total fire ban for Northern Country, North Central, North East and East Gippsland on Sunday.
The high temperatures have also prompted the Australian Open to suspend play on all its outside courts and close the roofs of the indoor stadiums.
In a later update, authorities said aircraft and emergency response crews will be in the area throughout the afternoon and into the night.
A forecast wind change about 5pm is expected to change the fire changing direction, pushing it north towards Barongarook.
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