An urgent bushfire threat has been issued for the Yarra Valley township of Healesville.
The Country Fire Authority released three urgent warnings this morning due to rising danger from the 'Maroondah-Yarra complex' bushfire.
Healesville residents have been warned their properties are directly threatened by a fire burning in a westerly direction from the Donnellys Weir area.
The CFA warnings apply to residents in the Mount Lebanon-Chum Creek on Kinglake Road between Merlin Street and Blackwood Road.
It also applies to those in the vicinity of St Leonards Road, Trench Farm Road, Myers Creek Road, Valley Farm Road, Lowes Road, Warringah Drive, Arlunya Road, Kay Road, Fairview Road, Blackwoods Road, Donnellys Weir Road, Camerons Road, McGregor Avenue, Goondah Lane, Clifford Grove, White Street, Westmount Road, Evelyn Grove, Eadie Avenue and Wattle Court.
Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) spokesman Stuart Ord said the Healesville fire was about three kilometres from the main township.
"It's part of a fire we have known about for some time. The fire's been backing down a gully, it's obviously either reached some dry fuels or, in fact, in a gully, sometimes in a gully we have erratic winds," Mr Ord said.
He warned residents may experience smoke and burning embers reaching their properties and should patrol their houses to find and put out any burning embers that may land.
Across Victoria 21 bushfires continue to burn, as firefighters took advantage of cooler conditions to backburn, fortify control lines and black out areas they had not previously been able to reach.
But the race is on to get on top of the fires before expected extreme temperatures and hot northerly winds by Wednesday and possibly of lightning strikes on Monday that could start new fires ahead of Wednesday's blast of heat.
