A bushfire raging in Perth’s east is threatening lives and property, according to an urgent warning issued by the state’s emergency authorities.

The Wooroloo blaze an hour to the city’s east continues to burn, with an “act immediately to survive” directive issued for more than a dozen areas, while some residents have been told “it’s too late to leave and leaving now would be deadly”.

There are reports up to 20 houses have already been lost.

An emergency warning is in place for The Vines, Bailup, Ellenbrook, Gidgegannup, Milledon, Walyunga National Park, Upper Swan, Aveley, Wundowie, Red Hill, Belhus, Baskerville, Herne Hill, Bullsbrook, Wooroloo and Brigadoon.

Residents in surrounding areas have been told to be on alert by the Department of Fire and Emergency Services, with continued unpredictable weather creating a risk to suburbs.

“You need to shelter in your home in a room away from the fire front and make sure you can easily escape,” the warning states.

“You must shelter before the fire arrives, as the extreme heat will kill you well before the flames reach you.

“If your home catches on fire and the conditions inside become unbearable, you need to get out and go to an area that has already been burnt.”

More than 250 firefighters fought the blaze overnight as hot and windy conditions lashed the area, with DFES spokesman Superintendent Peter Sutton saying the crews have braved “erratic fire behaviour”, according to The West.

“We have a number of properties lost. Our rapid damage assessment team is working on that. But there is no known loss of life,” he said.

“The perimeter of the fire is around 60km, so it is very large and the fire has spotted 3.2km from the head of the fire and crossed the river.”

Inspector Sutton said houses in Avon Bridge Estate and Shady Hills were under “imminent threat”, revealing crews had little success overnight, but there were no reports of injuries.

The Wooroloo fire is part of the Perth metropolitan area region plunged into a five-day lockdown due to the hotel quarantine coronavirus scare revealed on Sunday.

The DFES has told anyone who is forced to break the strict lockdown to avoid a fire threat to wear a face mask and adhere to social distancing measures.