RESIDENTS and holidaymakers on the NSW south coast were either evacuated or preparing to flee their homes last night after fires that had raged since Christmas Day jumped containment lines.

Residents south of Nowra, in the coastal areas of Sussex Inlet around St George’s Basin, were asked to evacuate their homes or camp sites.

A NSW police spokeswoman said that the south coast townships of Wandandian and Bewong had forced evacuations at around 6 pm.

And residents of the villages of Berarra, Basin View and Cudmirrah were told last night to prepare to evacuate their homes, as fears grew that the fires would jump the Pacific Highway.

Further south the fire in the Deua National Park was being pushed into the park’s inaccessible interior, with fire control authorities expecting it to move into the adjoining Damper State Forest west of Bodalla. If that were to occur landholders between Moruya and Bodalla would be under direct threat.

With fires burning through the bushland west of Wollongong, there were also fears that the fires could encroach into suburban parts of the Illawarra, including Mount Kiera, Mount Kembla and Mount Ousley. Considerable fire fighting resources were being putting out spot fires near the city.

Peter O’Neill of the State Emergency Service said there were serious concerns that high winds were creating firestorm conditions, with fire fighters abandoning some fires in the Shoalhaven area.

`People are very concerned, especially around Sussex Inlet,” Mr O’Neill said.

“There are a lot of tourists there who have not experienced bush fires before. They don’t understand how fires work or what to do.”