One person has been killed in the Cudlee Creek bushfire in the Adelaide Hills, and a prominent racing identity has been badly burnt.

Key points: The Cudlee Creek fire is still out of control but at a watch and act level

The Cudlee Creek fire is still out of control but at a watch and act level At least 15 homes have been lost in the fire, as well as 13 other buildings

At least 15 homes have been lost in the fire, as well as 13 other buildings A person has died at Charleston in the Adelaide Hills

South Australian Premier Steven Marshall confirmed the death at Charleston at a media conference this morning.

He said 15 homes had been destroyed in the fire, along with 13 other buildings and 16 vehicles.

There had been a "very significant" loss of livestock, he said, while 40,000 hectares had been burnt across the state.

"My fear is this is only the tip of the iceberg," Mr Marshall said.

Former Oakbank Racing Club chairman John Glatz has been burnt in the fire. ( ABC News )

"… It is going to [be] a real scene of devastation, especially for those people in the Adelaide Hills who have been most affected to date."

Former Oakbank Racing Club chairman John Glatz is in a critical but stable condition in the Royal Adelaide Hospital after being caught up in the Cudlee Creek fire.

Mr Glatz's friend, Frances Nelson QC, said he had suffered burns to 60 per cent of his body and was in an induced coma in the intensive care unit.

Thoroughbred Racing SA chief executive Jim Watters said he had attended a meeting with Mr Glatz on Friday morning and hours later he was fighting to save his home and horses.

"Now, he's fighting for his own life," he said.

He said Mr Glatz "never stood back from a challenge" and it was not surprising he tried to fight the fire and would have done the same to help others.

Police Commissioner Grant Stevens said the cause of the fire was undetermined but was not believed to be suspicious. It may have been caused by trees falling on power lines, he said.

Damage is still being assessed by residents, including at Woodside. ( ABC News: Clare Campbell )

Adelaide Hills still dangerous

The Cudlee Creek fire is now at a watch and act level.

The warning area includes Cudlee Creek, Gumeracha, Lobethal, Woodside, Mount Torrens, Mount Pleasant, Harrogate, Inglewood, Springton and Palmer.

The scrub fire is burning in a north/north-easterly direction towards Cudlee Creek, Gumeracha, Birdwood, Mount Torrens, Harrogate, Inglewood, Chain of Ponds, Houghton and Paracombe and conditions are continually changing.

Crews worked overnight to contain the fire and protect properties.

The SA Ambulance Service has taken 29 people to hospital. Twenty-three firefighters have been injured out of the 1,500 deployed.

The fire devastated this property on Bird in Hand Road in Woodside. ( ABC News: Claire Campbell )

CFS spokeswoman Ali Martin said the fireground was dangerous and people were still not be able to return to their homes.

"We've got a lot of trees that are dropping limbs or falling at the moment, especially over roads, so it is a dangerous place to be even in area where the fire has burned," she said.

The Menzies fire on Kangaroo Island has been downgraded to a watch and act level.

The warning is in place for the northern side of Kangaroo Island between Cape Forbin and Emu Bay, including Snelling Beach, King George Beach, Stokes Bay, Hummocky Point, White Cliffs, Dashwood Bay, Smith Beach, Wisanger and the Emu Bay township.

Close calls for many, others not so lucky

Space to play or pause, M to mute, left and right arrows to seek, up and down arrows for volume. Watch Duration: 1 minute 1 m Fire approaches Angus Campbell's property in Woodside.

Woodside resident Angus Campbell described the moment when flames from the Cudlee Creek bushfire approached his home yesterday.

Mr Campbell said he turned his sprinklers on, filled up his gutters with water and had water cascading from his home to protect it from the flames.

He said the fire then moved towards him.

"There was a kilometre of fire that just appeared on the far hill," he said.

"It was bizarre — it almost looked like it stopped and had a bit of a look and said, 'Yep, I'll take you', and then it went and it just came through the property within about 10 minutes."

The CFS saved the home of Mike Southam, but he said his father-in-law was not so lucky, describing the sight of his charred Brukunga home as "painting a thousand words".

"I've never seen anything like it," he said.

"We came back last night and there were just spot fires everywhere. It looked like a hundred bombs had gone off.

"It wasn't pleasant — it's mother nature I suppose."

The remains of Mike Southam's father-in-law's house at Brukunga. ( ABC News: Claire Campbell )

Another victim, Maxine Bergman, said she and her husband built their brick home more than three decades ago and it was now ruins.

She said she felt numb since discovering it was gone.

"My whole life is in that house — we're homeless," she said.

Properties without power

About 5,000 properties across the Adelaide Hills are still without electricity.

Hills residents have expressed their gratitude to fire fighters. ( ABC News: Claire Campbell )

SA Power Networks had to turn off the power because of the fire emergencies in the catastrophic weather conditions and it has not yet been possible for crews to go in to affected areas to reconnect.

Spokesman Paul Roberts warned the damage to power infrastructure was likely to be bad, saying the Cudlee Creek fire was "probably worse than Sampson Flat" because of hills and gullies where there would be smouldering trees.

"Dangerous trees could still fall subsequent to the fire, so it will be a really difficult job for the CFS and for us to start the process for assessing the damage and restoring power," he said.

The State Government will provide cash payments to people affected by the bushfires.

Those worst hit by the Cudlee Creek bushfire can apply for $280 per adult and up to $700 per family.

The financial assistance has been provided through the jointly-funded Commonwealth-State Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements.

Koalas rescued from the bushfire at Cudlee Creek. ( Supplied )

Road death identified as a Queensland man



Mr Marshall said a crash at Lameroo, in the Murraylands, was the cause of a bushfire in the area. A 24-year-old Queensland man died at the scene.

A Queensland man died in this crash at Lameroo connected with a bushfire on Friday. ( ABC News )

Friday's hot conditions were record breaking.

The Bureau of Meteorology said nine South Australian locations experienced their hottest day on record yesterday, including 48.1 degrees Celsius in Murray Bridge and 47.7C in Naracoorte.