Thousands of people are fleeing a vast “tourist leave zone” in Australia amid forecasts of ferocious bushfire conditions in coming days.

Since September, Australia’s bushfire crisis has killed at least 18 people and destroyed more than 1,200 homes.

The crisis escalated again this week, as blazes tore through communities in New South Wales (NSW) and Victoria.

The latest evacuations on the NSW south coast have been called “the largest relocation out of the region ever”.

On Thursday, long lines of cars clogged highways leading back to Sydney and Canberra. Many were filled those who had abruptly aborted holidays.

Local media reported hour-long queues for petrol in the town of Batemans Bay, while fuel was being trucked in to the region to offset dwindling supplies.

Many roads remained closed due to continuing fires and other dangers, such as unstable or fallen trees.

Though conditions have eased slightly, officials fear a dangerous forecast for Saturday will once again threaten lives and homes.

“If you are holidaying… you need to leave before this Saturday,” the NSW Rural Fire Service said, referring to a 260km (160 miles) stretch of coast.

The state government warned that conditions were likely to be “at least as bad” as New Year’s Eve, when hundreds of homes were destroyed.

Workers were clearing roads, restoring power, and conducting “backburning” operations to thin out bushland near fire fronts.

NSW Transport Minister Andrew Constance urged people to drive slowly amid thick smoke. In an emotional interview with the ABC, he added that his own friends had lost homes.

This week’s fires have destroyed at least 381 homes in NSW and 43 in Victoria, but officials say that number will grow.

The seven deaths in NSW include:

Family members of Mick Roberts, a 67-year-old Victorian missing since Monday, confirmed that he had been found dead in his home in Buchan, East Gippsland.

“Very sad day for us to (start) the year but we’re a bloody tight family and we will never forget our mate and my beautiful Uncle Mick,” his niece Leah Parson said on Facebook.

What is happening elsewhere?

Two regions of Western Australia (WA) face catastrophic fire danger on Thursday, and parts of South Australia are expected to see extreme conditions on Friday.

The ABC reported that bushfires had forced the closure of a 330km stretch of a highway in WA, forcing traffic to bank up.

Due to bushfire smoke, Canberra’s air quality was rated worse than any major global city on Thursday, according to Swiss-based group AirVisual. Australia Post has suspended deliveries there “until further notice”.

In Mallacoota, Victoria – where thousands fled to the beach on Tuesday – a navy boat was expected to begin evacuating people who have been cut off from roads.

On Wednesday, police boats arrived with 1.6 tonnes of water, food, a paramedic and medical supplies.

Fire services in Victoria and NSW warned they had been unable to reach some people in remote areas.

Meteorologists say a climate system in the Indian Ocean, known as the dipole, is the main driver behind the extreme heat in Australia.

The smoke from Wednesday’s fires was visible from the South Island of New Zealand, more than 2,000km (1,200 miles) away, where the haze tinted the sky orange.

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