Catastrophic fire danger in parts of WA

Total fire bans are in place in parts of Western Australia's Gascoyne, Central Wheatbelt and Great Southern regions, following a catastrophic fire danger rating.

Twenty-three shires are subject to the ban, which prohibits people from doing anything that might start a fire including lighting open fires and carrying out work such as grinding or welding.

Those who ignore the total fire ban could be fined up to $25,000 or jailed for 12 months or both.

The Department of Fire and Emergency Services is warning that if a fire starts in the affected areas it will be extremely difficult to control.

It said it would take significant firefighting resources and cooler conditions to bring any fire under control.