Heartbreak as residents of towns near Sydney find homes reduced to ashes

Residents faced scenes of devastation yesterday after bushfires ravaged communities and destroyed "hundreds" of homes in southeastern Australia, leaving one man dead with dozens of blazes still out of control.

Cooler temperatures and a drop in wind offered firefighters some relief after an intense battle on Thursday, but nearly 100 fires were still raging across the state of New South Wales.

NSW Rural Fire Services Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons said the situation was still "very active, very dynamic, very dangerous".

"We are going to continue to save life and to protect as much property as possible, but at the same time slowly take advantage of the weather conditions," he said, adding that 91,000 hectares had been burned out so far.

Several major blazes fanned by high, erratic winds in unseasonably warm weather ripped through communities in the Blue Mountains west of Sydney on Thursday, with whole streets razed.

One fatality has been reported so far - a 63-year-old man died from a heart attack as he defended his home on the Central Coast, north of Sydney.