A bushfire that has been burning on Western Australia's south coast for a month is challenging firefighters and continuing to threaten lives and properties.
Three separate emergency warnings have been issued for the fire, burning near Windy Harbour and surrounding communities, since it was sparked by lightning in early February.
It has burned 40,000 hectares of bushland and has sent thick smoke as far north as Perth.
A watch and act alert remains in place for people in parts of Windy Harbour and Meerup as crews struggle to navigate steep dunes, dense bush, boggy sand and, increasingly, fatigue.
Firefighters say they were frustrated when the fire once again broke containment lines at the weekend. (Supplied: Manjimup VFRS)
Meanwhile, locals are on constant alert, unsure if and when the next flare-up might occur.
Windy Harbour resident Ann Rice said her husband found himself locked out of the settlement at one point.
"It's been a bit tense, you know, seeing the fire in the distance … watching it sort of getting closer and closer,"
she said.
"Roads close, roads open, it's hard to know whether you're right to go get a litre of milk or not and if you'd get home again."
Containment breaches frustrate crews
The alert level for the fire was upgraded for the third time Friday night after strong southerly winds pushed the fire over containment lines.
The bushfire in the Shire of Manjimup has burned about 40,000 hectares in the 30 days since it started in early February. (Supplied: DBCA)
The breach threatened lives and homes in Meerup and burned another 7,700 hectares.
It came just a few days after a similar breach that saw the fire advance rapidly towards the Windy Harbour settlement.
"The fire front was from my house, I would say 150 metres, and it was just huge,"
Ms Rice said.
"I don't know how they stopped it, I really don't, it was just incredible … we watched them until midnight or more. It was incredibly fierce."
Deputy Incident Controller Brad Barton said it had been "frustrating and disappointing" for crews.
"We worked extremely hard all day … we did everything we possibly could with the time and resources available to us,"
he said.
"It's just really challenging conditions."
A local fire brigade says fire lines have stretched as long as 200 kilometres. (Supplied: DBCA)
While recent rainfall had helped slow the spread, Mr Barton said wetter conditions also made it hard to conduct back burning.
"We've been able to bring some of our fatigue management into place and with the rain and things and crews have had some good rest, but it does wear on people," he said.
Fire crews from across the state and country have been sent to assist, including personnel from New South Wales and the Northern Territory.
No private properties have been damaged so far.
A bushfire in the Shire of Manjimup near WA's south coast has been burning for one month. (Supplied: Manjimup VFRS)
Settlement on alert
The current fire reminds many in the community of the devastating Northcliffe fires in 2015, which razed about 40 rural properties and 98,000 hectares of land.
In 2015, authorities moved Windy Harbour residents to the beach.
Last week, a convoy of fire trucks evacuated about 10 locals from Windy Harbour via the town's only access road, which has been closed for much of the past month due to the blaze.
View from Windy Harbour resident Ann Rice's house last week. (Supplied: Ann Rice)
Mr Barton understands between 30 and 40 residents remained in Windy Harbour through the road closures.
Ms Rice said she was incredibly grateful for the fire crews' efforts in protecting their community.
"The firefighters are tired and the bush is tired,"
she said.
"Everyone's very tired."
