Photo taken on Nov. 11, 2019 shows the bushfire in Taree in New South Wales, Australia. (Xinhua/Bai Xuefei)

Australian fire crews are battling massive bushfires on Fraser Island, the world's largest sand island, which have been burning for six weeks, forcing tourists to flee off the northeast coast.

The fires have razed more than 76,000 hectares, nearly half of the island, which is world heritage listed for its tropical rain forests and sand dunes.

"Conditions remain unpredictable and can change rapidly," the state's emergency services said in a statement, adding that guests and staff at one of the island's largest resorts should be prepared to leave anytime.

Australia's Bureau of Meteorology forecast intense heat wave conditions in the inland areas of Queensland state Wednesday with temperatures expected to be well above 40 C but sea breezes will keep the weather cooler close to the coast.

Several guests were ferried off the island, also known by its indigenous name K'gari, on Tuesday as weather conditions worsened, Australian media reported.

More than 1 million liters of water and fire-retardant gel have been dropped on the fires since Saturday, the Queensland state fire department said.

Australia is baking through a major heat wave, which has been building across the country's outback interior over the last week and now shifting to the northeast.

Though moist conditions in the year 2020 have generally limited the threat from fires that devastated the country during the last fire season.

Total fire bans have been enforced in several parts of the northeast amid the first major heat wave of Australia's bushfire season, which usually runs from late southern hemisphere spring through summer.

Reuters