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Really feel for the people of Dunnalley
Bushfires gut Tasmanian town
UPDATE
Emergency crews are checking the fire-devastated town of Dunalley, east of Hobart, after reports of loss of life.
Around 80 properties were lost in the fire between Dunalley and Boomer Bay, according to Tasmanian Police acting Commissioner Scott Tilyard.
Acting Commissioner Tilyard said crews were being flown into the town on Friday night to investigate unconfirmed reports of a fatality.
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Bushfires earlier rained down on hamlets and beachside towns in southern Tasmania, burning homes and community property in extreme weather.
A police boat is being sent to rescue about 50 people taking refuge on the waterfront at the top of the Tasman Peninsula.
The worst fire came out of hills to the east of Hobart and, fanned by high winds and record temperatures, hit towns approaching the state's iconic Tasman Peninsula.
"You could see it jump the highway, blow up and move really quickly," said local MP Rebecca White.
"I've heard that quite a few homes have been lost, and the Dunalley school is gone. It's pretty horrific if that's the case."
The Tasmanian Fire Service confirmed structure losses around the towns of Copping and Dunalley, and said embers were falling further down the peninsula at holiday towns including Murdunna.
Twitter posts said some people were forced to shelter beneath the canal's bridge, take to the sea to evacuate by boat, and the local fish and chip had burned.
With the main highway cut, Ms White said some tourists who had been to the Port Arthur historic site had been ferried out, as the fire burned further south on the Tasman Peninsula.
The TFS was forced to split assets between this fire and another that ran through bush and small-holdings west of Hobart.
Police said it appeared that the Derwent Valley fire started on Thursday from a campfire that was not properly extinguished on Wednesday night, before a total fire ban was imposed.
This fire in the Derwent Valley cast a pall of smoke over the city, though the TFS said no property in or around the city was in danger from the fire.
Hobart recorded its highest ever temperature, 41.8 degrees at 4pm - one degree higher than the previous 1976 record.
Several hundred firefighters using 114 units were fighting a total of 19 active fires with an easing of conditions forecast overnight.
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