Residents and holidaymakers at an isolated Sunshine Coast community have been forced to flee by boat from an out of control bushfire whipped up by gusty winds.

November 13, 2019

Residents and holidaymakers have piled onto boats to escape a large out of control bushfire whipped up by gusty winds on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast.

Firefighters and waterbombers battled the blaze that jumped containment lines at Noosa North Shore on the northern banks of the Noosa River on Wednesday afternoon.

“About two hours ago we thought we had it contained but the wind is terribly variable at the moment,” Noosa mayor Tony Wellington told AAP.

“A change of wind means it’s now spotting beyond containment lines.”

Mr Wellington said the entire population of about 180 residents and holidaymakers had been evacuated from the peninsula of land that adjoins the Great Sandy National Park.

The only way in and out of the area is by ferry or private boat, he said.

“This is the second time they’ve been evacuated … they were evacuated over the weekend during the Cooroibah fire,” he said.

Emergency services said the unpredictable blaze is burning in the vicinity of Beach Road and the First Cutting, and may impact the Wallaby Track area.

It’s the same area where three homes were destroyed by a fast-moving fire in 2017, about a kilometre from the Noosa North Shore campground. 

Manager Leesa Downie said while many people had chosen to sit out the firestorm at the council’s evacuation centre on Wallace Drive, she had headed to the local RSL for lunch.

“There’s a pokie promotion on, my daughter’s here too and she’s got a jackpot so the machine is going off its head over there,” she said.

“There’s aircon, food and pokies, what more do you want?

“I’m safe, my house not so much but you get that. Nothing I can do about it now,” she said.