A shopkeeper on the New South Wales South Coast says locals are facing "bedlam" as hordes of people jam the roads in a bid to escape the path of the bushfires before the weekend.

With a state of emergency taking hold from tomorrow in NSW, and authorities calling on people to leave affected areas, lawless behaviour is reportedly on the rise.

A number of towns on the South Coast have been cut off for days and are running out of supplies.

Shopkeeper Sue Mazzuoli said it had been "bedlam" for South Coast locals. (A Current Affair)

"They were stealing from the supermarket because they had to feed the family and they had no money," shopkeeper Sue Mazzuoli told A Current Affair.

"People were just panicking, especially the kids, the kids were just really worried."

Ms Mazzuoli runs a local shop in Sussex Inlet.

Ms Mazzuoli claimed people had stolen from a local supermarket amid a panic. (A Current Affair)

She's told visitors to get out of town, because they're using up resources the locals will need.

"You can't access petrol, gas ran out, chaos at the supermarket," she said.

"All the ATMs are down, and the young people these days travel with no money, so they were even more panicked."

Traffic was backed up for kilometres in places. (A Current Affair)

Ms Mazzuoli's son had to deliver her some emergency supplies in the form of a gas bottle, a jerry-can of fuel, a fridge and a generator.

But even for those that have left, the going has been slow and frustrating.

Drivers found themselves stuck in traffic banks that extended for kilometres.