Firefighters battle large uncontained blaze on North Stradbroke Island

Firefighters battled to contain a large vegetation fire on North Stradbroke Island on Friday night, following storm activity.

The view from Russell Island. Picture: Terry McParlane

Firefighters battled late into Friday night to contain a large vegetation fire on North Stradbroke Island, following storm activity nearby earlier in the night.

Three Queensland Fire Department crews arrived on scene at about 9.20pm, with more crews on the way.

A Queensland Fire Department spokesman confirmed it is too early to tell what caused the blaze.

The Bureau of Meteorology has warned that windy conditions in SEQ may hinder firefighting efforts, with strong, dry winds potentially intensifying the blaze.

“One factor will be that it will be a little bit windier today, so it’ll make it a little bit harder to fight those fires, just as you have these gusty south-southeasterly winds pushing through particularly offshore, but also extending over the land. That could enhance the fire behavior a little bit and probably be the main factor today,” meteorologist Shane Kennedy said.

Mr Kennedy added that south-southeasterly winds tend to bring drier air over land, though moisture from ocean winds around the island may help to offset some of those effects.

“At least for the island, they should be getting some decent winds off the water, so that should keep that moisture up a bit,” he said.

On social media, witnesses described the lightning show prior to the fire as “spectacular”.

“I saw the strikes of lightning from Macleay Island, I actually caught some on camera they were huge and amazing,” Chantal Allard wrote on Facebook.

More to come.