Guide · 6 min read
Bushfires and the roads: ratings, warnings and closures
From spring to autumn, fire closes roads across southern Australia; in the north, fires burn mostly in the dry season, through winter and spring. A highway can shut in minutes when a fire crosses it, and the warning and the closure are published by two different agencies. Here is how to read the ratings and warnings before a drive, where each state posts them, and what fire services say to do if you are caught on the road.
When the season runs
In New South Wales the statutory bush fire season runs from 1 October to 31 March, and some council areas start earlier because of local conditions. The other states and territories declare their fire danger periods area by area, through their fire services, and the dates move with the season.
What matters for a drive on a given day is the Fire Danger Rating and any warning in force, not the calendar. Both are forecast or issued daily, and both can change during the day.
Fire Danger Ratings, and what they mean for a drive
Since 1 September 2022 every state uses the same four ratings, the Australian Fire Danger Rating System. The rating says how dangerous a fire would be if one started. It does not predict whether one will start, and it does not close a road by itself.
| Rating | What the fire services say | For a drive |
|---|---|---|
| Moderate | Plan and prepare. Most fires can be controlled. | Know where you would go if a fire started near your route. |
| High | Be ready to act. Fires can be dangerous. | Check warnings before you leave and along the way. |
| Extreme | Take action now to protect your life and property. Fires will spread quickly. | The fire services say to reconsider travel through bushfire risk areas. |
| Catastrophic | For your survival, leave bushfire risk areas. | Do not plan a drive through bushfire risk areas that day. |
Wording from the Tasmania Fire Service and SA CFS explanations of the national system. Days with little risk carry no rating.
The three warning levels
When a fire is burning, the fire service issues warnings under the Australian Warning System. The levels and colours are the same in every state.
- Advice (yellow): an incident is active but there is no immediate threat to lives or homes. Be aware and keep up to date.
- Watch and Act (orange): there is a possible threat to lives or homes. Take action now to protect yourself and others.
- Emergency Warning (red): there is a threat to lives and homes. You may be in danger and need to take immediate action.
Where each state posts warnings and road closures
Fire warnings come from the fire service; road closures come from the road authority. Live Roads puts both on one map where their licences allow it. Where it does not have a feed, the official site is the place to check.
| State | Fire warnings | Road closures | On Live Roads |
|---|---|---|---|
| NSW | NSW RFS (Fires Near Me, Hazards Near Me app) | Live Traffic NSW | Warnings and closures |
| VIC | VicEmergency, CFA | VicTraffic | CFA fires and closures |
| QLD | Queensland Fire Department | QLDTraffic | Warnings and closures |
| WA | Emergency WA | Main Roads WA | Warnings and closures |
| SA | SA CFS | Traffic SA | Closures only |
| TAS | TasALERT | Department of State Growth (planned works) | Planned roadworks only |
| ACT | ACT Emergency Services Agency | Transport Canberra and City Services | Closures only |
| NT | SecureNT | Road Report NT | Closures only |
SA CFS, TasALERT, VicEmergency and ACT ESA publish no feed whose licence lets a site like this one republish it, and SecureNT publishes no open feed, so their warnings are linked, not shown.
If fire reaches you on the road
The fire services' advice is not to drive in a bushfire at all, and never towards one. Smoke makes it very dark, headlights do not help, other vehicles are hard to see and roads can be blocked. If you are caught, the CFA says:
- Park away from bushes and trees, where there is empty ground around the car, such as a sports ground.
- Turn off the engine. Turn on the headlights and the hazard lights.
- Stay in the car with the windows and vents closed.
- Get down into the footwell, lower than the windows, and cover yourself with a pure wool blanket.
- Drink water.
- When the fire has passed, check it is safe before you leave the car, then call 000.
Before you set off
- Check the Fire Danger Rating for every district on your route, not only where you start.
- Check the warnings in force in each state you will cross, on its fire service's site.
- Check closures on your road on Live Roads or the state's road authority.
- Carry water and a pure wool blanket, as the CFA advises for a car caught by fire.
- Never drive towards a fire: the CFA says to drive away from it.
Fires reported now 163
- Victoria HighwayFull closure
Bushfire on the Victoria Highway, Kununurra
Since Tue 20 Oct, 10:21 pm AWST
Victoria Hwy between Ivanhoe Rd and Emu Creek, Kununurra - Smoke over road · Road Closure · Reduced visibility. Exercise extreme caution. · Kununurra
Main Roads Western Australia · WA · updated 1 hr ago
- Victoria HighwayBushfire
Bushfire on the Victoria Highway, Kununurra
Since Tue 20 Oct, 10:21 pm AWST
Victoria Hwy between Ivanhoe Rd and Emu Creek, Kununurra - Smoke over road · Reduced visibility. Exercise extreme caution. · Kununurra
Main Roads Western Australia · WA · updated 1 hr ago
- Victoria HighwayBushfire
Bushfire Advice, Kununurra
Since Tue 20 Oct, 3:52 pm AWST
MONITOR CONDITIONS - KUNUNURRA · A Bushfire Advice is in place for people travelling on and to the north of Victoria Highway, from the east side of Kununurra to the Emu Creek Community.
Emergency WA (DFES) · WA · updated 7 hr ago
- Great Northern HighwayBushfire
Bushfire Advice, Bularl DI Wunami and Mount Hardman
Since Tue 20 Oct, 3:21 pm AWST
MONITOR CONDITIONS - BULARL DI WUNAMI AND MOUNT HARDMAN · A Bushfire Advice is in place for people travelling along Great Northern Highway in BULARL DI WUNAMI and MOUNT HARDMAN in the SHIRE OF DERBY/WEST KIMBERLEY.
Emergency WA (DFES) · WA · updated 23 hr ago
- Bushfire
Bushfire Advice, Winton, Corfield and surrounding areas
Until Wed 21 Oct, 11:33 am AEST
AVOID SMOKE - Winton and Corfield · Thick smoke is affecting Winton, Corfield and surrounding areas. This is from several fires burning near Corfield and Winton. These fires could burn for days. Protect yourself from the impacts of smoke. · - No properties are at risk. - Smoke could make it hard for some people to breathe and can cause health issues. - Some roads may be closed or impacted by smoke. It could be hard to see. You may need to drive a different way.
Queensland Fire Department · QLD · updated 6 min ago
- Bushfire
Bushfire Advice, Dajarra and surrounding areas
Until Wed 21 Oct, 1:45 pm AEST
AVOID SMOKE - Dajarra · Thick smoke is affecting Dajarra and surrounding areas. This is from a fire burning near Camel Creek. This fire is under control. Protect yourself from the impacts of smoke. · - No properties are at risk. - Smoke could make it hard for some people to breathe and can cause health issues. - Some roads may be closed or impacted by smoke. It could be hard to see. You may need to drive a different way.
Queensland Fire Department · QLD · updated 6 min ago
- Bushfire
Bushfire Advice, Archer River and surrounding areas
Until Wed 21 Oct, 1:47 pm AEST
AVOID SMOKE - Archer River · Thick smoke is affecting Archer River and surrounding areas. This is from a fire burning on the Peninsula Developmetnal Road. This fire is not under control. This fire could burn for days. Protect yourself from the impacts of smoke. · - No properties are at risk. - Smoke could make it hard for some people to breathe and can cause health issues. - Some roads may be closed or impacted by smoke. It could be hard to see. You may need to drive a different way.
Queensland Fire Department · QLD · updated 6 min ago
- Bushfire
Grass Fire (Advice), Green St, Belmont South
Since Wed 21 Oct, 2:23 am AEDT
Location: Green St, Belmont South, NSW 2280 · Status: Not yet controlled · Size: 0 ha · Agency: Fire and Rescue NSW
NSW Rural Fire Service · NSW · updated 9 min ago
- 155 less urgent entries not shown. All of them are on the live map.
Get bushfire & emergency alerts for your area
Official bushfire warnings (Advice, Watch and Act, Emergency Warning) from the NSW RFS, Queensland Fire Department and Emergency WA, large fires from the CFA in Victoria, Extreme and Catastrophic fire danger days and Total Fire Bans in NSW and the ACT, and Pacific tsunami messages. By email, on this browser, or both.
Not included: Bureau of Meteorology weather warnings (storms, floods, wind), whose licence doesn't allow it; get them at bom.gov.au. Nor South Australia, Tasmania or the NT's fire warnings, for the same reason. One message per change, a few an hour at most, and nothing from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. except Emergency Warnings, Catastrophic days and tsunami warnings. Not an official warning service. Privacy
By email
On this browser
…
Questions
- Do roads close on Catastrophic days?
- Not because of the rating alone. The rating forecasts how dangerous a fire would be; roads close where a fire is burning or where the authorities close them. On a Catastrophic day the fire services say not to be in bushfire risk areas at all, so the safest plan is not to drive through them.
- Where do Live Roads' bushfire warnings come from?
- From the NSW Rural Fire Service, the CFA in Victoria, the Queensland Fire Department and Emergency WA, through Roadscore, the data service behind the site, with expired warnings filtered out. Fire-related road closures come from each state's road authority.
- Why does Live Roads not show South Australian or Tasmanian fire warnings?
- Their feeds carry no licence that allows a site like this one to republish them. The bushfires page links to SA CFS and TasALERT instead, and closures on South Australian roads still show from Traffic SA.
- Is it safe to drive through smoke?
- The CFA advises against driving in a bushfire and towards one: smoke makes it very dark, headlights do not help and roads can be blocked. If you see smoke ahead, turn around early.
Live now
Sources
- Warm summer predicted as bush fire season officially commences (30 September 2024)· NSW Government
- Australian Fire Danger Rating System explained· Tasmania Fire Service
- Australian Fire Danger Ratings· SA Country Fire Service
- Australian Warning System· DFES Western Australia
- Stay safe in your car in a bushfire (Easy English, 2024)· CFA Victoria
- Fires Near Me· NSW Rural Fire Service