Homes saved from wildfires in southern Australia

Firefighters managed to contain a raging blaze that was threatening up to 1,000 homes near the southern Australian city of Hobart today.

However, an official warned that hot, dry conditions could bring more fires later this week.

Heavy winds and unseasonably high temperatures sparked a massive wildfire at a disused quarry about a mile from Hobart on the southern island state of Tasmania, according to Danny Reid, a spokesman for the state fire service.

About 20 firefighting crews and one helicopter were used to contain the blaze, which threatened up to 1,000 suburban homes on the edge of a city wildlife refuge that was engulfed by the flames, Reid said but within a few hours, the blaze was contained.

“They’ve just about got it under control,” Reid said. “The fire should be under control in the next couple of hours.”

However, Reid said the fire risk remained “extreme” for the entire state, and more fires were expected to start tomorrow and on Friday.

Wildfires are a regular feature of Australian summer months, burning thousands of acres of forests and sometimes blasting into towns and cities with deadly results.

They are sometimes sparked by lightening, but more often caused by human interference, such as vehicle sparks, agricultural burns and arson.

Meanwhile, firefighters in the mainland state of South Australia contained a wildfire near the fishing community of Port Lincoln on the Eyre Peninsula, the state’s Country Fire Service said.

Nine people were killed in blazes on the Eyre Peninsula in January last year.