Four people have died in bushfires burning out of control near the West Australian town of Esperance.

West Australian police said early on Wednesday morning they had received reports of multiple deaths in the fires, which were burning near the towns of Grass Patch and Salmon Gums, about 100km north of Esperance, and at Stockyards Creek, about 25km east of the town.

The deaths were confirmed in a statement at 6am local time. Police spokeswoman Susan Usher said the four victims had been found in the fire area between Grass Patch and Salmon Gums. Five disaster victim identification officers and two arson squad detectives were on their way to the scene.

#Breaking: Video footage released of what authorities are calling a 'Monster Fire' in WA that's killed four people. https://t.co/Uo4FqGx5ts — Sunrise (@sunriseon7) November 17, 2015

The fires were started by lightning strikes.

An alert from the West Australian Department of Fire and Emergency Services – issued at 5.16am local time (8.16am AEDT) – issued an “emergency warning” for people in Grass Patch, Salmon Gums and surrounding areas in the shire of Esperance.

“You are in danger and need to act immediately to survive,” the warning said. “There is a threat to lives and homes.”

The fires were moving slowly north-east but were reportedly out of control and unpredictable, with flames up to two metres high. Firefighters expected the wind would shift to the west later on Wednesday, which would push the fire front east.

The warning told residents: “If the way is clear, leave now for a safer place. Do not wait and see, leaving at the last minute is deadly.”

The North Cascade fire had burnt about 300,000 hectares on both sides of the Coolgardie-Esperance Highway between Scaddan and Salmon Gums.

Salmon Gums residents were being relocated to Norseman or Esperance, while a number of roads remain closed.

Primary schools at Scaddan, Grass Patch and Salmon Gums are closed on Wednesday.

There are also severe and extreme fire danger warnings for South Australia over coming days. Temperatures were expected to exceed 40C in parts of the state on Wednesday, with a total fire ban in place across 12 districts.

In Victoria, fire crews have contained a bushfire in Gippsland, but it’s feared the blaze has destroyed a holiday house.

The fire raged out of control and threatened homes near Devon North on Tuesday afternoon, but CFA chief fire officer Joe Buffone told the Nine Network on Wednesday the fire was contained overnight.

“There were about seven or eight homes that were directly in the footprint but our crews on the ground did a fantastic job in actually protecting those,” he said.

“We have a report of one dwelling which we understand is a holiday residence that has been destroyed.”

Buffone said crews would be working hard to control the fire on Wednesday ahead of hot, windy weather expected on Thursday.

A total fire ban is in place for the second straight day in the Mallee region in north-western Victoria, with severe fire risk and temperatures into the low 40s expected on Wednesday.