Building destroyed as Perth Hills fire uncontrolled

A bushfire watch and act alert was in place for Perth residents tonight in parts of Red Hill, Millendon, Herne Hill and Baskerville in the City of Swan.

An empty community property has been destroyed and sheds damaged, but authorities said all homes have so far been saved.

The fire has threatened lives and homes as it burned out of control.

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Crews were hoping by late on Wednesday night the blaze would be completely surrounded by fire breaks, which machines had been digging all day.

Police are investigating the cause after the Department of Fire and Emergency Services labelled the blaze suspicious.

Incident Controller Murray McBride said the Red Hill fire, which began just after 12.30pm yesterday, remained uncontained.

Heavy air tankers were deployed to spray fire retardant over the bushfire zone due to the challenging terrain stopping machines from entering, McBride said this afternoon.

A number of roads were closed including Padbury Avenue, Campersic Road between Stock and Haddrill plus William Street from Moore Road.

It's hoped most roads will be open by lunchtime tomorrow.

So far 680 hectares of grass have been burnt as winds fan the bushfire slowly in a south-westerly direction.

It's been a long 24 hours for firefighters and a nervous wait for residents who either chose to leave their homes or to stay and defend.

One resident, Margaret Gollagher, said the situation was terrifying.

"It's not just the fire, it's making sure you're out of the way of the services trying to fight it and make sure you can get in to feed the animals," she said.