Bushfires rage overnight

(ROUGH CUT ONLY - NO REPORTER NARRATION)

Fire crews continued to battle hundreds of wildfires throughout the south-east of Australia on Wednesday (January 9), for the sixth continuos day.

At Nowra on the south coast of New South Wales flames lapped the highway as fresh blazes ignite due to hot winds. The Nine Network reported that more than 140 fires are burning across New South Wales.

Fires still pose threats to regional communities but the Bureau of Meteorology has said a cool change is working it's way along the east of the country but it is expected to heat up again by Friday (January 11).

At Carngham Station near Ballarat in the state of Victoria fire has destroyed a homestead that sits on 2,000 hectares of property. Local media reported that up to seven people have been treated in hospital after a grass fires swept throughout the area on Tuesday (January 8).

The severe fire conditions replicated those of 2009, when "Black Saturday" wildfires in Victoria state killed 173 people and caused 4.4 billion U.S. dollars worth of damage.