A video posted on Facebook by a man on a boat off the coast of Mallacoota shows how the whole area is under a thick blanket of smoke and dark red skies.
Thousands of people, including tourists and locals, are trapped on a beach in East Gippsland as fires rage around them.
Mallacoota, 514km east of Melbourne, is being ravaged by the bushfires that is threatening people and homes.
![Video off the coast of Mallacoota shows how everyone is under smoke and red skies. Photo / Facebook](https://www.nzherald.co.nz/resizer/v2/MMS744UJHUQLHMMJBTHYBNM7ZM.png?auth=311348eb5d8830393e2ba8b1b9d52ff604199032a932924f5370934b1fde918c&width=16&height=9&quality=70&smart=true)
The man says in the video he managed to escape with his family, including his pets, by getting on the boat and setting off away from land.