Central Queensland is facing a "catastrophic" fire risk as several blazes threaten properties around Deepwater and the area from Ambrose to Mount Larcom, north-west of Gladstone, where fire emergencies have been declared.

Key points: Deepwater, Baffle Creek, Rules Beach and Oyster Creek residents warned "an extremely large and intense fire" will impact those areas

Deepwater, Baffle Creek, Rules Beach and Oyster Creek residents warned "an extremely large and intense fire" will impact those areas Residents are being urged to leave Ambrose after a fire emergency declaration

Residents are being urged to leave Ambrose after a fire emergency declaration Authorities say it is alarming what fire crews are up against, with conditions never seen before in Queensland

As 138 fires burn across Queensland, the Bureau of Meteorology declared a catastrophic fire danger for the Capricornia and Central Highlands and Coalfields.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said fire concerns had also prompted authorities evacuate about 8,000 people from Gracemere, west of Rockhampton.

Authorities have warned residents near the Deepwater fire that anyone who chooses to stay is playing Russian roulette.

Residents of Deepwater, Baffle Creek, Rules Beach and Oyster Creek areas are being warned "an extremely large and intense fire" is expected to impact those areas today.

Locals are being urged to leave their homes in Ambrose and authorities have warned the escalating fire was expected to impact properties.

Paramedics have treated one person at Ambrose for smoke inhalation, but the person was not taken to hospital.

"It is an uncontrolled fire that we can do very little about at the moment," Queensland Fire and Emergency Service (QFES) Commissioner Katarina Carroll said.

More than 30 schools west of Rockhampton to Emerald have closed early, due to the extreme heat and bushfire threat.

State disaster coordinator Bob Gee urged people outside those fire-threatened areas to go home.

"Unless you have been told to leave, go home and make yourself safe — stay there unless you have been told to go," he said.

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"Already police and members of the Queensland Fire and Emergency Service are putting themselves at risk trying to help you, you are playing Russian roulette," he said.

"If you have children with you, you need to think really hard about not losing a house but losing the people you care most about.

"It's not normal for Queensland. People will burn to death. Their normal approaches most probably won't work if this situation develops the way it's predicted to develop. It's no different from a category five cyclone coming straight through your door," he said.

Fire continues to move through Finch Hatton, west of Mackay in north Queensland, and resident Luana Royle said conditions there had been "terrible".

"Our fires around here, you couldn't even see 500 metres in front of you this morning," she said.

"Everyone is OK, but two houses have went, which is pretty sad. And one house was saved but the shed was gone.

"There's a couple of people who are nearly housebound and I've already told them I will be taking them and putting them in the car to leave, should the near arise again."

Sorry, this video has expired On the front line at Deepwater in central Queensland (Supplied: QFES)

Earlier, Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk issued an urgent plea to a small group of residents in Rules Beach to evacuate immediately.

However, several of the evacuation roads have now been impacted by the fire.

"Firefighters may not be able to hold the containment lines," she said.

The Premier said people in 50 homes were refusing to leave and warned the beach was not going to be safe.

A fire at nearby Round Hill is burning within containment lines but a watch and act alert remains in place.

"This is not an ordinary fire … this is a dangerous fire that could result in a firestorm," Ms Palaszczuk said late on Tuesday afternoon.

The "firestorm" conditions expected today occur when strong winds blow burning material beyond containment lines.

Rural volunteer firefighters are enduring 12-hour shifts battling the Deepwater bushfires. ( ABC News: Emilia Terzon )

Andrew Sturgess from QFES said it was alarming what crews were up against.

"We're not talking about a very hot day or a very bad fire, today we're talking about records, so these are conditions that we've never seen before. We'll see fire behaviour that we've never seen before," he said.

About 100 New South Wales volunteer firefighters are heading to central Queensland to relive exhausted local crews.

Bureau of Meteorology senior forecaster Gabriel Branescu said a "dry storm" forecast this morning for central Queensland could make fires even more unpredictable.

"Basically, in some places we see not much rainfall, just a dry lightning from those storms, they are very elevated, they move pretty quick and they can drop quite a bit of gust," he said.

Authorities are warning of volatile and extremely dangerous conditions. ( Supplied: Queensland Ambulance )

QFES Commissioner Katarina Carroll said they were facing the worst days Queensland crews had ever seen.

"Today and tomorrow are going to be the most dangerous days I think ever in our fire calendar," she said.

"The next 48 hours are critical to us in this state and it really is a dangerous situation that we have never faced in Queensland before."

'Everything just black'

Cane paddocks near Finch Hatton in central Queensland are destroyed and blackened by fire. ( ABC News: Melanie Groves )

A community meeting was held last night to update residents at Agnes Water.

Local man Marcus Webber said he feared the worst after being forced to evacuate his home.

"My property is burnt out, the footage I got from a firefighter shows all of the fire 3 to 4 metres away from my house. Everything just black, wind, smoke everywhere," Mr Webber said.

"But my house [was] still standing there, so I fell down and almost cried — the joy was overwhelming."

Red Cross volunteers have arrived at evacuation centres in the area to help those who have fled their homes

Map An emergency warning to leave immediately is in place for the people in the Deepwater region north of Bundaberg, while a watch and act is in place for Dalrymple Hill west of Mackay.

A separate watch and act is in place for Dalrymple Heights, west of Mackay, where residents have been warned firefighters may not be able to protect every property.

Mackay Mayor Greg Williamson said a large area just outside the township of Finch Hatton is completely burnt out, describing the scene as "eerie".

He said while higher humidity overnight helped, drier conditions are expected to return today.

"There's predictions of thunderstorms this afternoon now. Those thunderstorms probably won't bring any rain but they'll bring lightening and that's more fire risk.

"Ten per cent humidity for the Finch Hatton area, I mean that's almost unheard of."