SYDNEY, Feb. 15 (Xinhua) -- An out of control wildfire 200 kilometers north of Sydney could burn for a month, a Rural Fire Service inspector said on Thursday.
The massive blaze has already consumed around 7000 hectares of the Putty State Forest and the Wollemi National Park, and with warm, dry conditions expected again on Thursday, fire authorities are scrambling to identify possible containment strategies.
"It is quite an enormous fire now and it is burning in a remote area," New South Wales State Rural Fire Service inspector Ben Shepherd told local media.
"With no significant rain on the forecast, they are now indicating this fire could burn up to a month."
"So crews will concentrate on identifying those containment lines and working behind properties along Putty Valley Road."
Making matters more difficult for ground crews is the thick, mountainous terrain of the area as well as the dangers posed by burning embers which can travel over a kilometer from the original fire.
As a result, several waterbombing aircraft have also been brought in to battle the blaze.
Across the rest of New South Wales, a total fire ban remains in place for five separate locations as a hot northwesterly wind pushes across the state, bringing "server fire danger".